A bulk of the 27 acres of prime land at Vyttila Mobility Hub (VMH) is lying unused due to inordinate delay in finalising the second phase development work.
Little has taken place despite the VMH Society drawing up a Rs.368-crore project earlier this year to execute second phase works on a public-private partnership (PPP) basis. Aware of the potential for inter-modal transport among buses, metro rail and ferries, French development agency AFD offered to extend loan for the project at around two per cent interest and a few years moratorium on repayment. They also promised to help with the design, said sources in the Society.
“No further development has taken place at the hub after the Rs.15-crore first phase was launched in 2011 in 5.37 acres of land. This is because of the inordinate delay in reconstituting the VMH Society after the Left Democratic Front government came to power six months ago. We sent a few letters to the government to remind them of the lethargic pace of development of the hub,” said sources.
Seamless integration
While former stakeholders of the Society were keen on the PPP model, the French development agency was for the project remaining in the public domain. “For them, the priority is on seamless integration of different commuting modes, so that people shift from private vehicles to public transport. Development of commercial space as envisaged under the PPP mode is secondary for them,” the sources said.
As per the PPP initiative which never took off, 1 lakh sq. ft of built up space was for commuters and 5 lakh sq. ft for commercial use. A few stakeholders expressed concern whether it would result in public land falling into the hands of private entities.
Currently, work on a major metro station is under way at the hub. But a second boat jetty and augmenting of ferry services to areas such as Marine Drive, Thripunithura and Kakkanad are overdue.
Entry of buses
VMH Society officials said buses from eastern parts of the city like Thripunithura, Kolencherry, Muvattupuzha and those from Kottayam were unable to enter the hub due to lack of proper entry and exit points. The Vyttila-Kunnara Park road is too narrow for buses to enter the hub.
The hub’s second phase development works must be finalised in tandem with the six-lane flyover proposed at Vyttila Junction. “A skywalk or foot overbridge too is required for commuters to safely walk from Vyttila Junction to the hub,” they said.
