The jamboree planned on Sunday for Kochi metro’s first anniversary celebration at Edappally and other metro stations will be a precursor to the stations becoming bustling spaces of social activity.
The stations in the Aluva-M.G. Road corridor and those coming up in the corridor up to Pettah would become one-stop points for commuters. They would buzz with activity, said A.P.M. Mohammed Hanish, the managing director of Kochi Metro Rail Limited (KMRL). “Shops, eateries, commercial firms and bank branches will shortly open in metro stations, a blessing to commuters who will be able to purchase a variety of merchandise,” he told The Hindu , referring to the huge commercial space built alongside major metro stations.
The metro agency is banking on rent from the premises spread over one lakh sq.ft as one of the sources of non-ticketing revenue. The metro would thus provide people with a travelling-cum-shopping experience, said Mr. Hanish.
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UMTA’s role
Referring to the Unified Metropolitan Transport Authority (UMTA) that is awaiting the State legislature’s sanction, he said it would further enhance quality of travel since the authority would optimally coordinate operation of different modes of public transport in the Greater-Kochi landscape. The sector would thus witness tremendous change, added Mr. Hanish.
Besides private and KSRTC buses, KMRL has mooted electric and conventional autorickshaws to operate feeder services from metro stations. They can operate as share autos, charging ₹7 per commuter for a 1.5-km distance, as on-call autos or as ones that operate on the basis of an app that will be readied in two months.
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GPS has already been installed in 850 buses. A journey planner that will help commuters keep tabs on their movement and an app will be readied by the end of the month.
Land on lease
KMRL also intends to lease out unused land that cannot be used as parking space outside metro stations. This will be for a period of 15 to 20 years.
“We have sought Expression of Interest from those interested in the venture and tenders will be opened shortly.”
On how the metro agency would garner funds to maintain trains and allied infrastructure once their defect-liability-period got over, Mr. Hanish said KMRL would take over their expenses. Income from both ticketing and non-ticketing sources was set to increase.
Moreover, there is a moratorium up to 2020 on the loan taken from French lending agency AFD. “We hope to achieve operational break-even status before that,” he said.
The KMRL had borrowed approximately ₹1,500 crore from AFD for the ₹5182-crore metro project.