Chennai: The government of India is formulating a new Metro Rail Policy to enable innovative finance such as land value capture and transit-oriented development for new metro rail projects, said Union Minister for Urban Development, Venkaiah Naidu.
“A national policy on Transit Oriented Development has been formulated and approved by the GoI. This will form a mandatory requirement for all new metro rail projects in the country,” the minister said.
He added that the government is focusing on improving the public transport so that people abandon private modes and go public, as it holds many benefits, including reducing the carbon footprint. “The Government of India has also standardised the critical specifications for rolling stock and signalling systems of metro rail for promoting standardisation indigenisation. We are also planning to roll out a new Green Urban Mobility Scheme, which will be aimed at improving the overall mobility in the city by providing last mile connectivity through non-motorised Transport such as pedestrian pathways and bicycle sharing schemes,” he said. He added that the aim of the scheme is to promote electric mobility and alternative fuels.
