KOCHI: A tripartite agreement for the Rs 740-crore integrated water transport project for Greater Kochi area was signed by the Kochi Metro Rail Ltd, the state government and the German funding agency KfW in New Delhi on Saturday. The project is expected to bring dynamic improvement in the water transport scenario of Kochi.
The pact was signed by Mr Elias George, additional chief secretary (transport) on behalf of the state government, Mr Abraham Oommen, director (finance) for KMRL, and Mr. Peter Hilliges, director, on behalf of KfW in the presence of Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan.
The total cost of the project is Rs 747 crore, excluding Rs 72 crore for land acquisition, of which KfW would give financial assistance to the extent of 85 million euros, approximately Rs 597 crore as long-term soft loan. Rs 102 crore will be contributed by the state government.
The initiative taken up by KMRL for developing a modern water transport system for the Greater Kochi region under Unified Metropolitan Transport Authority (UMTA) include introduction of modern vessels, renovation of boat jetties, re-development of access roads with street lights and better connectivity between the jetties and the bus and metro stations.
The entire water transport project is proposed to be fully operational by 2019. Based on the demand, the identified 16 routes have been prioritized under phase I and phase II. During the phase I (2016-17), it is proposed to start operation in seven routes with a fleet requirement of 43 boats while in phase II (2018-19), it is proposed to operate all the identified 16 routes.
The high-speed modern boats to be procured under the project with facilities like AC and Wi-Fi will provide the same transportation experience as the metro, and will be named as ‘Water Metro’. The KMRL is expecting a considerable surge in the ridership in water transport due to the improved system and a special aqua wing of the metro agency will be responsible for the water transport.
