With the formal launch of commercial operations (albeit with a lot of technical snags) of the Red and Yellow lines (Line 2A and Line 7) of Mumbai Metro on Gudi Padwa this week, the Mumbai Metropolitan Region Development Authority (MMRDA) also set up a few new bus shelters outside the metro stations.
These new bus shelters feature a map of the two metro lines in question, feature space for wheelchair-users and interestingly, have the bus routes marked on the road surface as well.
New bus shelter at Virvani Estate near Aarey Metro Station (Anand/@aa_G7460 on Twitter)
According to the images and the description of the bus stop (written on the bus stop itself), they feature USB ports for charging phones, CCTV cameras, and are dedicated to Divyang users. The bus shelter itself has been designed by an agency called Aaartist, which has designed signboards for several railway stations and other prominent properties around Maharashtra.
Road Marking at Virvani Estate Bus Stop (Anand/@aa_G7460 on Twitter)
As you can see in the above two images, bus routes have been marked on the side of the road. Oddly, while Limited Stop routes (226, 460 and 706) have been marked in red, the AC (A-488) and Express (C-15, C71, C-72) routes remain marked in black along with the sole regular route (225). Now, at the bus stop itself, there are purple line markings on the floor that correspond to the dotted line that separates each route in the second line. Clearly, this is meant to be a queue management system, which says रांगेत चला, Crowd Management System, Mind Set.
Let’s hope that buses follow this demarcation when it comes to stopping. We’ve all seen how Pune’s BRTS drivers initially struggled to stop the bus at the exact stop for the doors to open.
Let’s hope for better bus stops in the future. In the mean time, do read this: Building a Smart Bus Stop.
Featured Image: Aarey Metro Station by Gandharva Purohit.
If you are stepping out, do note that while masks are no longer mandatory, the new XE variant of the Wuhan Virus is making the rounds. Stay safe, better safe than sorry.
In 2019, former Maharashtra Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis approved a rubber-tyred metro – the first in the country called the Metro Neo for the city of Nashik. While other smaller cities were considering light rail transit – now called MetroLite – Nashik went on a different route.
Two lines have been proposed by the Maharashtra Metro Rail Corporation (MahaMetro) for the Metro Neo in Nashik, totaling 30 stations across 32 km.. Below is a map of the same.
Nashik Metro-Neo Map
A rubber-tyred metro is essentially a hybrid of road and rail technology. In many ways it is like a combination of a bus rapid transit system (BRTS) and a light rail transit system (LRTS).
Nashik’s Metro Neo system got approval from the state government in August 2019, and the detailed project report (DPR) was sent to the Centre in June 2020. It was approved by the Centre in 2020 and eventually ₹2,092 crore was allotted to it by Union Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman in January 2021 as part of the annual union budget.
In April 2021, MahaMetro invited an Expression of Interest (EoI) for manufacture and supply of the trolleybuses that would run using an overhead catenary.
Now, on 27 August 2021, Praveen Mudholkar, a journalist working for BBC Marathi, tweeted out two videos of what looked like prototypes for the rolling stock. You can take a look below.
One can make out the MahaMetro logo and the Metro Neo logo on the sides of the vehicle as well as the vestibule. While it is not clear who is the manufacturer, the rear windshield resembles that of Tata Motors’ Marcopolo/Starbus series of buses. However, the video was taken in Nagpur, and Tata Motors manufactures its buses at Dharwad, Karnataka.
A thought did occur to me on this. In 2018, when MahaMetro awarded the tenders for Pune Metro’s rolling stock to Titagarh Firema, it was reported that while 25 per cent of the trains would be manufactured at Firema’s plant in Italy, the remaining would be manufactured at MahaMetro’s facility in Nagpur.
Here is a better quality video of the same coaches, courtesy Devesh Shah’s Infra Vlogs on Youtube. Don’t forget to subscribe to Devesh’s channel!
Anyway, let’s hope that Metro Neo comes to Nashik soon! It’s Neo time for something Neo.
If you intend to step out please wear a mask, carry sanitizer and maintain social distancing.
In 1993, an episode of the American animated sitcom The Simpsons spoke of how the town of Springfield, flush with money decided to go in for a Monorail only for it to end in disaster due to shoddy work and cutting corners.
A quarter century later, Mumbai seems to be on the same
path. The 19.5 km long Monorail carries less than 50,000 daily passengers after
burning ₹3,000 crore, a very sad number, especially in comparison to the
existing line of the Mumbai Metro that ferries nearly 500,000 passengers daily
across 10.8km.
While there are several reasons behind the low patronage,
there is a common link between all of them – the rolling stock supplied by Scomi.
To give a quick recap; operations on the Monorail began in
early 2014 across a 9km stretch with four trains of four coaches each. A fire
in November 2017 caused the entire system to remain shut till September 2018
following which it reopened. Subsequently, the rest of the line opened in early
2019, exactly five years after the line first opened. However, the remaining of
ten trains never arrived due to financial troubles that the Malaysian
manufacturer is facing. Consequently, MMRDA cancelled the tender in late 2018
and began the process of retendering. As a result, the frequency of services on
the corridor is abysmal. Trains from Chembur to Wadala depart with a gap of 45
minutes.
The Monorail was initially operated by a joint venture
between Scomi and L&T – who built the infrastructure – which was cancelled
eventually. The MMRDA now plans to operate the line under the newly formed
Mumbai Metro Operations Corporation (MMOCL) that will operate the upcoming
elevated metro system. It had opened tenders for operations as well, receiving
only one bid from Reliance Infra that currently operates the Metro. As a result
of this, Mumbai today faces the prospect of staring at a major white elephant
in the form of the Monorail.
Unlike Metro rail, Monorails are relatively more proprietary
in nature, and not too standardised. Thus, it is difficult to get trains
manufactured by other manufacturers to work on an existing system. For
instance, Bombardier’s monorail trainsets feature a different straddle width
that makes it completely inoperable in Mumbai. Hitachi meanwhile has three
models, one of which has the same dimensions as the Scomi SUTRA currently
operational. MMRDA’s tender received only two bids – China’s CRRC Changchun
Vehicles that supplied rolling stock to the Chongqing Monorail and again,
China’s BYD whose BYD Skyrail that is yet to be operational anywhere. BYD
currently is the world’s largest electric bus manufacturer, with a significant
presence in India through a joint venture with Hyderabad-based Olcetra (formerly
Goldstone).
What might be a stumbling block right now is the Union Urban
Development Ministry’s Make In India norms that mandate that 75 per cent of
coaches for metro rail be sourced domestically. While it is unclear if these
norms will extend to monorail technology, it would be better for the MMRDA to
find a workaround. While CRRC was looking to set up a manufacturing unit in
Maharashtra to supply trains to Nagpur, BYD already has a local partner in
Olectra, through which the trains could be manufactured. Another route that
could be looked at is through the Maharashtra Metro Rail Corporation
(Mahametro) that recently gave an order for metro trains to Titagarh Firema, an
Italian subsidiary of Titagarh Wagons. While Titagarh Firema would manufacture
25 per cent of the trains at the Firema plant in Italy, the rest would be made
in Nagpur, at Mahametro’s facility before making their way to Pune. MMRDA could
tie up with Mahametro and have either of the two firms build it domestically.
As far as operations as concerned, the MMRDA should look to MMOCL – which will eventually take over operations – for support. MMOCL has already dispatched a team of engineers to Singapore to have them trained in metro operations. A second plan to augment this with training in Hong Kong was cancelled due to the ongoing protests. Along with this, the corporation has also called for tenders for private operators to operate the upcoming systems, much like how Reliance Infra has subcontracted operations of the Metro. MMOCL could perhaps send a team of engineers to China or Japan to train them, or look at collaborative partnerships to get the system back on track.
Simultaneously, BEST needs to start with Feeder services to Monorail Stations. Monorail Stations, as with Metro Stations need to be treated on par with Railway Stations. While a significant crowd will prefer the rail due to its speed, some of it will prefer the bus due to lower costs. BEST needs to stand between the two.
Whatever the state government chooses to do, it needs to act fast. The Monorail in its current avatar has been avoided – by operators and commuters alike – and that is not good. It needs to be put back on track – literally and figuratively – and made into a viable rapid transit system, for it has the potential. The image that the Monorail currently has needs to be overhauled entirely and once this has been done, it could potentially be extended, and potential new lines could be built, in Mumbai or otherwise.
