Telangana approves Mindspace-Shamshabad metro corridor in Hyderabad

Hyderabad (Urban Transport News): The Telangana state cabinet has approved a 30-km long Mindspace-Shamshabad metro corridor between to ease traffic snarls in the IT hubs of Hitec City, Financial District all the way up to the international airport. The information was shared by KT Rama Rao, TRS working president and former Industries Minister.

Addressing the people at the launch of a new office of JLL India in Hitec City, Rao said that the key challenges before the Telangana Government are the rising congestion on the city roads and crumbling infrastructure in Hyderabad. He said that the work is being done to manage the situation and a few more segments under the Strategic Road Development Programme will become operational shortly, that will help in easy movement.

Talking on the proposed elevated bus rapid transit system (BRTS) in Hyderabad, he said that the proposed BRTS will also prove handy in dealing with the congestion. New Delhi based consultancy firm, Aarvee Associates Architects Engineers & Consultants Pvt. Limited had been selected as general consultant to prepare a detailed project report (DPR) for the proposed project.

The elevated BRTS will connect Kukatpally and Wipro Junctions. This project is expected to take about two-and-half years for completion. Highlighting on other development, Rao said that the outer ring road (ORR) which is 25 meter right of way for the proposed metro rail, which can touch speeds up to 120 km/h. ORR metro corridor will have limited stops and the design will allow adequate space for luggage as well. This corridor would be executed by Hyderabad Airport Metro Limited (HAML).

The use of public transport in Hyderabad was only 36 percent compared to cities like Mumbai, where the usage was about 75 percent. Also, carpooling was yet to catch up in a big way in the city. I urge the corporate to join hands with Government in last mile connectivity solutions. Many companies were already ferrying their staff from metro and MMTS railway stations to their campuses back and forth. The companies can pair up with Government by planning to use the fleet effectively during non-peak hours for last mile connectivity.

Rao said that the construction work on Mindspace-Shamshabad metro corridor will commence soon. This stretch is part of phase II of Hyderabad Metro rail project.