Chennai: The IT corridor, dotted with software companies, educational institutions and mushrooming swanky multi storeyed residential apartments, triggering more development by the day, has brought a new problem.Increasing traffic congestion is becoming a cause for concern to the government.In an effort to reduce the traffic congestion, the state government has proposed several road infrastructure projects worth over Rs 1,000 crore, including a 45 km elevated expressway on the busy IT corridor to the popular tourist destination of Mahabalipuram. “The project will be taken up in two phases and the work will be completed from Taramani up to Siruseri in the first phase and from Siruseri to Mamallapuram in the second phase,” chief minister J. Jayalalithaa said. Making a suo moto statement in the Assembly on Monday, she said Rs 5 crore would be allocated to prepare a detailed plan to implement the project at the earliest.Ms Jayalalithaa said the 22-km road up to Thiruninravur from Padi was handed over to National Highways Authority of India in 2005 based on the request of NHAI. But the authority did not upgrade the road since there was no provision for toll collection and as a result the road lacked maintenance, she said.
RENOVATION NDMC has set a fresh deadline of June 25, but structural issues need to be dealt with
April 12, 2013
After missing several deadlines the New Delhi Municipal Council (NDMC) has now claimed that it will finish the entire renovation work by June 25.
Experts, however, have rubbished the deadline, saying it is not realistic as there are a number of structural issues that need to be dealt with first. Delhi chief secretary D M Spolia took stock of the ongoing work on Tuesday with the NDMC chairperson, Engineers India Limited officials and traders.
Officials told the chief secretary that as escalators for the subways will come in June from China, work will be completed only by that time.
“The matter was discussed and the civic agency was asked to set a deadline, which would be met. The civic agency and EIL has assured us that they will finish all the work, including the subways, by June 25. The service development work will be completed much before that,” said a senior Delhi government official.
Delhi Chief Minister Sheila Dikshit had directed the chief secretary to visit the market to assess the amount of work that needs to be done as traders’ have suffered huge losses due to the work.
“The remaining work cannot be completed in three months. They have not even finished the structural work yet, how can they complete the entire market so soon? So many deadlines have been set and not met. This too seems like a tall order,” said an architect requesting anonymity.
The New Delhi Traders’ Association (NDTA) said that EIL seemed more confident about finishing the service development work and hoping to meet the deadline.
“Traders were present during the inspection. EIL officials promised to stick to the deadline. They have said they will start removing the construction and demolition waste so that pedestrians do not face any difficulty. We hope work will be finished soon,” said Atul Bhargava, president of NDTA.
The restoration work has been going on for the past four years. For the five existing subways that were being remodelled, the civic agency is yet to install ramps and escalators.
According to NDMC officials, the construction of the utility duct in the Middle Circle will require more time. Service lines such as those of telephone and electricity lines will go underground in this duct.
Source- www.hindustantimes.com
e-tags to debut on highway from Ahmedabad to Mumbai MAMUNI DAS
April 12, 2013
Drivers on the Ahmedabad-Mumbai National Highway will soon be able to use a common electronic tag on their vehicles to pay tolls while crossing the six toll plazas. The plazas are operated by two different road developers — Larsen and Toubro, and IRB Infrastructure. Each toll plaza will have two lanes with electronic-readers to capture data from tagged vehicles.
This is the first time the Indian Highways Management Company Ltd (IHMCL), a firm set up to implement the inter-operable electronic tolling system across the national highway network, will be undertaking the job. IHMCL is jointly owned by highway developers, financial institutions and the National Highways Authority of India (NHAI).
Trial runs on the stretch are already on, for which ICICI Bank is providing the back-end clearing-house mechanism and has tied up with US-based firm TollPlus for technical knowhow.
Having an inter-operable system requires a clearing-house mechanism, so the toll amount debited from users can go to the different firms that operate the particular stretch.
India’s 80,000 km national highway network is dotted with over 200 toll plazas, about half of which are now handled by different highway developers, and the rest by NHAI.
A common electronic highway toll payment mechanism has been Government’s long-time goal, and NHAI had started work on such a project close to eight years ago. But the project was first marred by a war among vendors with competing technology standards. This ended with recommendations by a committee headed by Nandan Nilekani in 2010. Subsequently, attempts to start the project did not make much headway due to lack of an institutional mechanism, an issue expected to be resolved with the formation of IHMCL.
IHMCL was formed in late 2012 with 25 per cent equity from NHAI, 50 per cent from highway developers and 25 per cent from financial institutions.
As of now, the 22 highway developers, also slated to be equity-holders, include L&T IDPL, IRB Infrastructure, Oriental Structural Engineers, Shapoorji Pallonji Infrastructure, SREI Infrastructure Finance, GMR Highways, Reliance Infrastructure, Ashoka Buildcon, HCC, Sadbhav Engineering, TRIL Roads, Gammon India and Uniquest Infra Ventures.
Financial institutions expected to take a stake in the project are ICICI Bank, IDFC Projects, Macquarie, Union Bank of India and IDBI Infrafin.
“It is a good collaborative effort. Somebody had to take a step towards creating a clearing-house and connecting all the toll plazas,” said Athar Shahab, CEO, Uniquest Infra, a joint venture between Malaysian Government’s investment arm Khazanah and IDFC.
Calling this a good beginning, K.K. Mohanty, Managing Director, Gammon Infrastructure, said his concern is about increasing public awareness so that people see the value in adopting electronic toll payment.
Tribunal stays road widening work in Vasant Kunj, govt admits PWD illegally felled trees
April 12, 2013
Tribunal stays road widening work in Vasant Kunj, govt admits PWD illegally felled trees
NEW DELHI: The National Green Tribunal on Tuesday ordered an interim stay on a road widening project in South Delhi’s Vasant Kunj till the next hearing on May 29. The tribunal also warned the Delhi government of strong action if further felling of trees took place.
The government admitted that the Public Works Department had started felling trees without mandatory permission from the forest department.
The tribunal also issued a bailable warrant against the chief executive engineer of the PWD because he was not present at the hearing.
The tribunal was hearing a petition against the widening project filed by Sonya Ghosh, a resident of sector D3 of Vasant Kunj. The tribunal has asked the government to file a reply in two weeks. In a three-part series on March 5, 6 and 7, Hindustan Times had highlighted how the PWD widening a 3.5-km stretch from Andheria Mod towards Mahipalpur by demolishing boundaries and felling trees illegally.
A group of residents had said that a 75-metre-wide road (current width is 17.2 metres) for high-speed traffic through a densely-populated colony would disturb normal life. On completion, this would be the Capital’s widest road.
A local court on February 26 has already stayed work on the road-widening project in front of Sector D2 on a plea by the residents.
They claimed that the project was being executed in the most brazen manner and in complete disregard of the civic and environmental norms.
The representation of PWD in the tribunal is necessary to adjudicate the dispute and, in fact, PWD is responsible for carrying out the widening work, said the tribunal.
The 3.5-km stretch where it is being widened from four lanes to eight lanes has on its both flanks hundreds of flats in several pockets of sectors such as A and D. Sector A has pockets named A, B and C. Rest of the sectors in Vasant Kunj have pockets named in numeric value.
The brazen felling of trees without permission has exposed the lack of seriousness on part of the authorities in protecting Delhi’s green cover.
When the felling started residents and activists went up in arms. As the chorus grew, felling was stopped but the digging of soil continued, leaving a number of trees with exposed roots and without any soil support.
Source- http//www.hindustantimes.com
Traffic police ask Metro to come up with better diversion plan on Ring Road
April 12, 2013
Traffic police ask Metro to come up with better diversion plan on Ring Road
NEW DELHI: The traffic police have asked Delhi Metro Rail Corporation (DMRC) to come up with a better traffic diversion plan for Ring Road.
The DMRC had recently indicated that Metro construction work on the stretch connecting Bhikaji Cama Place with Hazrat Nizamuddin would barely affect five per cent of city’s traffic. It is part of the 37-km long Mukundpur-Shiv Vihar corridor.
But the traffic police are anticipating major inconvenience. They have asked DMRC to come up with an alternative diversion plan at the busy South Extension market, Vinoba Puri and Ashram. According to traffic police, Metro work will trigger massive snarls on Ring Road, especially at Ashram and Captain Gaur Marg. According to Anil Shukla, additional commissioner of police (traffic), diversions at Ashram and Vinoba Puri are a matter of concern due shortage of space at the construction sites.
Earlier, Delhi Metro had hired a private company (TPA Engineers Consultancy Pvt Ltd) to conduct a survey on Ring Road to ensure minimum obstruction to traffic flow during construction work
Important areas on Ring Road where Metro construction will take place include Azadpur, Shalimar Bagh, Netaji Subhash Place, Shakarpur, Punjabi Bagh West, Rajouri Garden, Mayapuri, Naraina Vihar, Delhi Cantt., Dhaula Kuan, Moti Bagh, Bhikaji Cama Place, Sarojini Nagar, INA, South Extension, Lajpat Nagar and Srinivaspuri.
Source_http://paper.hindustantimes.com/epaper/viewer.aspx
Metro work to hit major shopping hubs
April 12, 2013
-
Metro work to hit major shopping hubs
- 10 Apr 2013 Hindustan Times (Delhi)
- Subhendu Ray [email protected]
The construction of five major stations — Bhikaji Cama Place, Sarojini Nagar, INA, Lajpat Nagar and Nizamuddin — as part of Delhi Metro’s proposed corridor connecting Mukundpur with Shiv Vihar in phase 3 is scheduled to kickstart within a fortnight.
The traffic police would divert vehicles on the stretch that connects the Capital’s main markets. Jams are also expected on arterial roads that connect the ring road to south Delhi.
According to Jitendra Tyagi, director (works), Delhi Metro Rail Corporation (DMRC), construction would largely be completed by early 2015, after which traffic restrictions would be lifted.
“The diversions are going to affect traffic movement on the busy ring road,” said Anil Shukla, additional commissioner of police (traffic). “We would allow partial closure of roads and divert traffic to other roads.”
DMRC will put up barricades next week, after which the traffic police will conduct a trial run to test the stretch.
Traffic police said the diversions would hit Feroze Gandhi Marg, Barapullah to Aurobindo Marg, Africa Avenue to ring road, August Kranti Marg and Green Park, among other areas.
Source- www.hindustantimes.com
Pay a toll to shop on Brigade Road?
April 9, 2013
Pay a toll to shop on Brigade Road?
BANGALORE: A peak-hour ride though the Central Business District may soon come at a price.
The government of Karnataka has taken up for consideration a proposal from the Union ministry of urban development to implement congestion pricing policy to ensure the city is free from “excessive motorization”. It will also encourage investment in public transport, create infrastructure for walking and cycling, and strategize transit-oriented development (TOD).
“We got the proposal notification recently,” confirmed V Manjula, Directorate of Land Urban Transport. The urban transport authorities will now vet the proposal and study the issue before replying to the Centre.
Congestion charging is a system of imposing a surcharge on users of roads or public goods, subject to congestion through excess demand. The charge could apply to services like buses, electricity, Metro and even telephones. It is implemented by either cordoning off a busy area of the city for private vehicles, and imposing a toll on those who want to enter the area for access to a lane or facility.
This charge has helped increase lane speed and reduce traffic in London, Milan, Singapore and Stockholm; the wide streets of central and west London are almost free of rows of cars. Congestion was reduced by 21%.
Some stakeholders managing Bangalore’s transport needs are already pressing for some sort of congestion pricing mechanism in the city.
MA Saleem, additional commissioner of police (traffic), told TOI, “Once congestion charging comes into effect, more people will switch over to public transport, reducing traffic problems. Bangalore’s typical problem is that IT corridors are congested as the roads are narrow. Every year, the number of vehicles on Bangalore’s roads goes up by 10%. The city already has over 47.5 lakh vehicles.”
However, Saleem admitted that until the city gets a reliable and faster integrated public transport system, it is difficult to implement the congestion pricing policy.
What the Centre wants
The proposal by the Union ministry, sent to the state on January 5, 2013, says:
“Excessive use of private vehicles on available road space is inefficient use of precious urban land. There is, thus, a need to discourage use of private vehicles in core areas of the city to increase the mobility of the people at large so they can reach their offices, workplaces, business centres, ships etc in time, without losing valuable working man hours…The congestion pricing is premised on a basic concept, ‘charge a price in order to allocate a scarce resource to its most valuable use’.”
The ministry, however, says that before implementing the congestion charging system, city authorities need to ensure that people have a good public transport system, pedestrianization and cycling. Congestion pricing should not be seen as a means to fill up government coffers but be used to develop non-motorized transport infrastructures and facilities, it adds.
It asks state urban development departments to conduct studies in each city, on whether demographic conditions permit congestion pricing in core areas.
Bangaloreans thumb down levy
Though it’s an old idea, Bangaloreans are surprised about congestion pricing in the city. They point out that high vehicle taxes work as a disincentive to buy cars and two-wheelers. With 6,500-odd buses making nearly 80,000 trips daily to cover 800 sqkm area of the city, BMTC is already a stretched resource. Namma Metro is sharing this burden, but covers only a small stretch. Citizens say public transport options are too few.
45-km elevated road on IT corridor to Mahabs
April 9, 2013
45-km elevated road on IT corridor to Mahabs
Chidambaram meets corporate honchos, seeks to allay fears over stalled projects
April 9, 2013
Chidambaram meets corporate honchos, seeks to allay fears over stalled projects
Amidst the ongoing gloom on the economic front, Finance Minister P Chidambaram today allayed fears of the industry over stalled projects and assured all steps to remove the bottlenecks.
“The agenda was to identify the projects that have been stalled. We’ve identified 215 projects which for one reason or another are stalled. We’ve identified another 126 projects which are new projects, to which banks have sanctioned loans but which have not taken off,” Chidambaram told reporters after the meeting.
Those in attendance included industrialist Anil Ambani, Prashant Ruia of Essar, Ajit Gulabchand of HCC and Madhu Kannan from Tata Sons.
Chidambaram was accompanied by Banking and Financial Services Secretary Rajiv Takru.
Bankers present included SBI Chairman Pratip Chaudhuri and heads of Bank of India, Central Bank of India and Union Bank of India.
“We are sitting with the bankers and the industry to find out why a particular project has been stalled and I am noting that down to go back and try to remove that block,” Chidambaram added.
The meeting comes on the back of a government estimate that economic growth will fall to a decade low of 5 per cent in FY13.
Many analysts are blaming stalled projects and declining investments as among the major factors hurting growth.
“He (Chidambaram) went into a lot of nitty-gritty (over stalled projects). He was very concerned and overall a very clear mandate was that these projects need to be completed,”
Aditya Birla Group Chairman Kumarmangalam Birla told reporters.
The Finance Minister went into details on each of those projects, not just at general level, Birla said, adding “he asked each one of us to talk about the projects and apprise him about the issues”.
Birla also said that Chidambaram was keen that these projects took off. “He personally took notes and I am sure he will take actions on whatever is required.”Assocham President Rajkumar Dhoot said the Finance Minister assured he would do his best to resolve the issues.”This is a first and a very good step taken by the Finance Minister of talking individually to everybody. He noted down all the things and he heard us very patiently. He said he will try his level best,” Dhoot said.Stating that issues such as land acquisition and environmental clearances were hampering completion of a number of projects by his firm, Gammon Infrastructure Projects Managing Director K K Mohanty said he expects things to move.”I told him that we were allotted six projects last year, which should have started in six months. But despite all financial closure and bank sanction, these projects are yet to take off even after 18 months of being awarded,” Mohanty said.”These projects have not yet started because of the issues like land acquisition and environmental clearance, among others,” he added.Mohanty said even those projects which are off the ground are nowhere near completion due to stumbling blocks like land acquisition and completion of a few clearances.Additionally, those project which are working have issues around cash flows due to growing instances of litigations, he said.
DND flyway drive gets dearer as Noida Toll Bridge Company hikes toll rates
April 9, 2013
DND flyway drive gets dearer as Noida Toll Bridge Company hikes toll rates
Toll rates for the DND (Delhi-Noida Direct) flyway were hiked from today by the Noida Toll Bridge Company Limited (NTBCL).”Two wheelers toll rates have been increased from Rs 11 to Rs 12, for cars from Rs 22 to Rs 25, LCVs from Rs 45 to Rs 55, bus and truck will now shell out Rs 70 from earlier Rs 55. Large vehicles will pay Rs 100 from existing Rs 75 and extra large vehicles from Rs 95 to Rs 135. The hiked rates are effective from today,” said Anwar Abbasi, spokesperson, NTBCL.
However, the commuters are disappointed with the increase four months after withdrawing the toll hike.”Today I paid Rs 25 as toll tax for my car instead of Rs 22. It will put an additional expense of Rs 180 every month,” said Neeraj Sharma, a resident of Noida who uses DND Flyway to go to his work place at Defence Colony in Delhi.
Work begins on ROB on Santa Cruz-Chembur Link Road
April 9, 2013
Work begins on ROB on Santa Cruz-Chembur Link RoadApril 08, 2013 The girders will form the foundation of the rail overbridge, which will connect Kurla east and west. The Santa Cruz-Chembur Link Road between the western and eastern express highways is basically a missing link and launching of the girders gives us confidence of completing the project by December, said UPS Madan, metropolitan commissioner. Fifteen girders will have to be laid by MMRDA followed by asphalt work, lighting and other works. The double-decker Santa Cruz-Chembur Link Road flyover will provide one more east-west connectivity with one arm reaching Lokamanya Tilak Nagar Terminus for commuters travelling towards north as well as south, another to Nehru Nagar in Kurla (E) and the third to LB S Marg in Kurla (W). Source-http://www.infranews.in/ |
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