Government of India has allocated Rs 2092 cr for state-of-the art Mass Rapid Transit System (MRTS) for the city of Nashik. It is indeed a moment of great pride for the people/city of Nashik which has been selected for this unique, innovative and prestigious project. The rapid transport system, called METRONEO, is the FIRST such system being developed in this country.
- The task of providing an efficient, safe, comfortable, reliable, environment friendly and appropriate transport system for the city of Nashik was entrusted to MahaMetro by Govt. of Maharashtra in Nov/Dec 2018.
- The feasibility report was taken up in January 2019 and after regular consultations with Nashik Municipal Corporation, CIDCO, public representatives and other stakeholders, the DPR was prepared and submitted to the Govt. of Maharashtra for approval.
- The Govt of Maharashtra on 28.08.19 approved the Nashik City Metro Neo Mass rapid transit system project.
- The notification from the Ministry of Housing and Urban Affairs (MOHUA), Govt of India will be issued shortly.
On this occasion Dr. Brijesh Dixit, MD, Maha Metro said “Nashik is the first city in INDIA who got funds in union budget for such a innovative, unique, eco friendly and first of its kind MRTS system, it will be game changer and milestone for the MRTS system in INDIA and abroad”.
- The concept of Metro-Neo was formulated after a very extensive and comprehensive technical consultations, interactions and due diligence with several stakeholders/technical experts.
- The system is eco-friendly, energy efficient, reliable, safe and capable of providing an efficient mass public transport system which is ideally suitable for the traffic needs of cities having population similar to Nashik in India as well as similar cities abroad.
- Shri Durga Shankar Mishra, Secretary, Ministry of Housing and Urban Affairs (MOHUA), Govt of India, while talking to all-state government secretaries, Urban Development, during the conference held on 22.1.2021 on Metro Neo, Metro lite, Water metro reiterated the use of Metro Neo for tier 2/3 cities of India.
- The Government of India has been contemplating since long to find an optimal transport solution for cities having populations of 2-3 million since appropriate MRTS has not been explored anywhere in India.
- The model developed for Nashik was discussed on various forums and finally Govt. of India on 21.08.2019 constituted a committee under the chairmanship of Dr. Brijesh Dixit, MD/Maha-Metro for standardization of detail specifications for a Rubber-Tyred Mass Rapid Transportation System with a view to implement this across India.
- The allocation of funds for Nashik Metro Neo in budget 2021-21 is based on the acceptance of the report of the committee by the Govt of India.
The salient features of Metro-Neo is outlined below:
- Two corridors are planned initially.
- Corridor 1: Gangapur to Mumbai Naka, length 10 KM and 10 stations (Gangapur, Jalapur, Ganpat Nagar, Kale Nagar, Jehan Circle, Thatte Nagar, Shivaji Nagar, Panchavati, CBS, Mumbai Naka).
- Corridor 2: Gangapur to Nashik Road, length 22 KM and 15 stations (DHRUV Nagar, Shramik Nagar, Mahindra, Shaneshwar Nagar, Satpur Colony, MIDC, ABB Circle, Parijat Nagar, MICO circle, CBS, Sharda Circle, Dwarka Circle, Gayatri Nagar, Samta Nagar, Gandhi Nagar, Nehru Nagar, Datta Mandir, Nashik Road).
- CBS will be an interchange station where both the corridors meet.
- There will be two feeder corridors:
- Feeder corridor one will run between Satpur colony – Garware – Mumbai Naka.
- Feeder corridor two will run between Nashik Road – Nandur Naka – Shivaji Nagar.
- The length of Electric Bus Coaches will be 25 /18 meter and carrying capacity 200/300 passengers.
- The buses will have rubber-tyre and draw power from the overhead electric wire having 600-750 V DC supply.
- The buses will take power from overhead electric wire through railway/tram like systems.
- The buses will be air conditioned with automatic door closing system, level boarding, comfortable seats, passenger announcement system, and passenger information system with electronic display.
- The stations will have staircase, lift and escalators with passenger information display.
- The station entry and exit will be provided on both side of the road to avoid road crossing by passengers.
- Feeder Bus (12 m) battery-powered will run on the existing road on the 2 feeder routes i.e:
- Mumbai Nakka via Garware to Satpur Colony (12 km).
- Nashik station to Shivaji-nagar via Nandur Nakka (12km).
- The feeder bus batteries will get charged while operating on the main corridors that will enable seamless travel with a wider coverage.
- No separate charging facility will be required.
- The Metro-Neo system is a UNIQUE concept being adopted for the 1st time in this country.
- It is comfortable, rapid, Energy efficient, less noisy (compared to diesel buses) and environment friendly.
- The capacity of main corridors will be 15000 PHPDT (Peak Hour Peak Direction Traffic).
- The system has been designed for headway (peak hour) 2 minute i.e. a new service after every two minute.
- The total cost of the project is Rs 2100.6 crore. Govt of Maharashtra, CIDCO and NMC share (Rs 552.19 cr) and Govt of India share (Rs 307.06+80.5 cr), total govt share Rs 939.3 cr. And the remaining 1161.3 will be loan component.
- The allotment of funds in the budget 2021-22 for Nashik city Metro Neo was possible due to efforts of Nashik Municipal Corporation, Maharashtra Govt, MOHUA (Govt of India), CIDCO, MIDC and Maha metro who worked jointly to make the concept of Metro Neo adopted for Nashik city.
Source: Pune Metro-Press Release
