The State government is keen on developing monorail so that it can act as a feeder service to Namma Metro in the city, Home Minister K.J. George said on Tuesday.
Mr. George was speaking during the inauguration of the 25th Road Safety Week organised jointly by the city traffic police and the State Transport Department. As many as 900 students from over 600 schools from in and around the city would be involved in awareness programmes to be organised as part of the Road Safety Week.
He said that the proposal to set up a monorail could be revived after the conclusion of the Karnataka Legislative Assembly session.“We have been thinking about developing monorail in the city so that it can act as a link to Namma Metro,” he said. If the proposal gets a nod, the project would be implemented on the public-private partnership model.
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“A few interested companies have made presentations (on monorail) to the Chief Minister. We have not taken any concrete decision yet. After the (legislature) session, we will invite suggestions from different sections of society — NGOs, transport planners, traffic police and other stakeholders. A decision will be taken only after a feasibility study is conducted,” he added.
Transport Minister R. Ramalinga Reddy blamed design flaws and drivers for Volvo bus accidents.
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To a query whether the State government would rethink the purchase of Volvo buses in the light of the third accident on Monday morning, Mr. Reddy said accidents happen because of drivers’ negligence.
He said that in case of the bus fire at Mahabubnagar and Haveri, the accidents occurred first and then the fire. “The vehicles caught fire because of the material used in the buses. The fuel tanks are located too close to the front portion of the bus. There are two fuel tanks each of 300 litre capacity. Moreover, the material used in the bus is aluminium, instead of steel, so that the bus is light in weight and gives good mileage,” he explained.