Corporation proposes bus rapid transit system for Coimbatore

The Corporation had proposed to introduce the BRTS connectivity linking Periyanaickenpalayam, Saravanampatty, Neelambur and Ondipudur with the railway station and bus termini.

Coimbatore 21/02/2014.
 Coimbatore Mayor S.M. Velusamy (left) arrives with Corporation Commissioner G. Latha (right) and Finance and Taxation Committee Chairman R. Prabhakaran for the Corporation budget session in Coimbatore, Tamilnadu, on Friday.
Photo:M.Periasamy.

To ease traffic congestion in the city and provide a better public transportation facility, the Coimbatore Corporation has proposed to introduce a bus rapid transit system. The Mayor, S.M. Velusamy, in his address said that the Corporation would write to the State Government for funds to implement the project.

The Corporation had proposed to introduce the BRTS connectivity linking Periyanaickenpalayam, Saravanampatty, Neelambur and Ondipudur with the railway station and bus termini.

The announcement said that the introduction of the BRTS system would ease traffic congestion, ensure easy movement of people but added that the Corporation would send a proposal to the Government seeking approval.

In the same breath the Mayor also spoke about mono rail.

All that he said was that the proposal to introduce the mass transit project was under the Government’s consideration.

Pathways

In his budget speech, Finance and Taxation Committee Chairman R. Prabhakaran said that the Corporation proposed to construct pedestrian pathways alongside the D.B. Road, T.V. Samy Road, Mettupalayam Road, Marudhamalai Road and CODISSIA Road to provide safety to pedestrians and prevent accidents.

To take up the project, the Corporation proposed to spend Rs. 3 crore this year.

Likewise, the Corporation would build bicycle tracks to encourage people to switch to non-motorised transport and take them off the roads. Those tracks would come up alongside the Gandhima Nagar Road, Vilankurichi Road, Vilankurichi-CODISSIA Road, State Bank Road. In all, the city would have bicycle tracks for 33.3 km.

And then the city would also have world-class roads, Mr. Prabhakaran said and added that the Corporation would take up Raju Naidu Road, Rajendra Prasad Road and Alagappa Road. The Corporation would study the feasibility and submit a report to the State Government for funds.

Green corridors

As part of the project the Corporation would also build green corridors alongside the tanks, he added.

The aforementioned announcements were a fall-out of the conference the Corporation had hosted sometime ago in the city to improve mobility in the city.