Large-Scale Personal Rapid Transit Projects and STudies in India
There are two large PRT projects underway in India, as of July, 2012. One is to be located in Amritsar to provide services to visitors to its Golden Temple The expected patronage forecast is 100,000 persons per day. The second project is located in Guragon which is a major eco-city project in northern India. Its expected patronage is in excess of 600,000 persons per day. Some details on each project are provided below. Both intend to use the ULTra PRT system developed in the U.K. and being operated now, for the first time, at the Heathrow International Airport near London. Both projects will be built and operated by Fairwood of India. This link provides illustrations of both planned PRT networks and a description of the planned service.
Amritsar project details and network illustration: http://www.fairwoodindia.com/personal-rapid-transport-system-amritsar
As of October, 2013, the Amritsar project has not yet received final approval. http://articles.timesofindia.indiatimes.com/2013-09-21/chandigarh/42272350_1_bus-rapid-transit-system-golden-temple-amritsar
Population estimate for 2011: 1,132,761
Gurgaon project: Article from Hindustan Times, July 4, 2012
Clip
---------------------------
Ranbir Saran Das of Fairwood Holdings told the CM that the proposed Gurgaon project
would be completed in three phases. The project corridor, with 143 stations en
route, would be 105-km long and pass through National Highway-8 and Iffco
Chowk.
The proposed fare of this service would be about R6 per km which is half the
fare of local taxi and less than the fare charged by auto-rickshaws. The PRT
can ferry 6.23 lakh passengers daily.
--------------------------
Source:
http://www.hindustantimes.com/India-news/Haryana/CM-puts-pod-taxi-project-on-fast-track/Article1-882935.aspx
-----------------------------------------------------------------------
Trivandrum study
This article mentions a PRT feasibility study for a 7 km
project in Trivandrum, between Vellayambalam and East Fort. It has been done
by Fairwood India but the report has not yet
been released. Trivandrum is located on the west coast of India and there is a
wiki available that
provides details about it.
Source: http://www.yentha.com/news/view/1/the-uncertain-future-of-pod-cars
------------------------------------------------------------------------
Notes:
- There is a Iffco Chowk located just outside of the Indian capital of New Delhi to the southwest and there is a Highway 8 that runs through it. Fairwood is supposed to complete this task in 2.5 years. A lakh equals 100,000. They expect this system to be able to handle some 623,000 people per day.
-
Be aware that these project description numbers may be highly aspirational and are subject to revision over time.
Link to an article about why urban transport innovation is so important in India, by Nathan Koren
-
Last modified: October 26, 2013