The Hindu 27.11.2013
Coimbatore Corporation to prepare new mobility plan for city
Sometime next week the Coimbatore Corporation would
invite a few government officials, civil society activists,
non-government organisations and trade body representatives for a
discussion to prepare a comprehensive mobility plan for the city.
The
second attempt to address the traffic issues that decelerate the city’s
development comes after the Corporation missed the bus after preparing
the first comprehensive mobility plan in 2007.
The
civic body had prepared the plan engaging a consultant to fulfil
obligations under the Jawaharlal Nehru National Urban Renewal Mission,
sources said.
One of the proposals mooted in the
mobility plan was the bus rapid transit system to ease traffic
congestion on roads and provide a mass transit project for the city.
The
proposal remained on paper as the Ministry of Urban Development asked
the Corporation to complete the other JNNURM projects, in the execution
of which its performance was below par.
It was also
because the then Corporation administration did not accord top priority
for providing solutions to transport problems in the city. But cities
like Ahmedabad, Jaipur, Kochi and even Kozhikode made considerable
progress.
A few of those cities completed the first
mass transit project and mooted proposal for the second. While the
others got the first project moving on the ground, the sources said.
Now
the Corporation had got a second chance to prepare a new mobility plan
and push for sanction for projects that would find a mention therein,
for transport was intricately connected with the city’s development.
Transportation solutions would lead to connectivity and that would result in business development.
Plus,
the opportunity for the preparation of a new mobility plan comes when
the Corporation had sought from the Ministry the establishment of a
urban metropolitan transport authority to provide transport solutions to
the city.
It had also sought the creation of an urban transport fund.
The
sources suggested that the new mobility plan should look at new areas
of growth while trying to decongest areas of stabilisation – meaning, it
should look at taking people away from the core business district to
new centres of growth, seek to establish new bus terminals as the
Ministry norms suggest establishment of a bus terminal for every million
population, parking bays, pedestrian and vehicular subways and much
more.
The sources added that the civic body should
carry out a feasibility study to decide on a mass transit project and
based on the study result decide on mono or metro rail.
The choice of the mass transit project should not be decided based on other considerations.