The train that never stops at a station!

July 25, 2014

How to get on and off the non-stop high speed train?!

A new Chinese train innovation-
How to get on & off the bullet train without stopping?!
VERY COOL CONCEPT !

No time is wasted. The bullet train is moving all the time. If there are 30 stations between Beijing and Guangzhou, just stopping and accelerating again at each station will waste both energy and time.

A mere 5 min stop per station (elderly passengers cannot be hurried) will result in a total loss of 5 min x 30 stations or 2.5 hours of train journey time!

The Chinese are innovative enough to come up with a non-stopping train concept.

When the train arrives at a station, it will not stop at all.

The passenger at a station embarked onto to a connector cabin way before the train even arrive at the station. When the train arrives, it will not stop at all. It just slows down to pick up the connector cabin which will move with the train on the roof of the train.

While the train is still travelling away from the station, those passengers will board the train from the connector cabin mounted on the train’s roof. After fully unloading all its passengers, the connector cabin will be moved to the back of the train so that the next batch of outgoing passengers who want to alight at the next station will board the connector cabin at the rear of the train roof.

When the train arrives at the next station, it will simply drop the whole connector cabin at the station itself and leave it behind at the station.

The outgoing passengers can take their own time to disembark at the station while the train had already left. At the same time, the train will pick up the incoming embarking passengers on another connector cabin in the front part of the train’s roof. So the train will always drop one connector cabin at the rear of its roof and pick up a new connector cabin in the front part of the train’s roof at each station.

Now to watch the video click on the link below..

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mKfKzfdXp3w&feature=youtu.be

Written by ITW Editor · Filed Under About, Default

six changes needed for better transportation

July 24, 2014

It is just a welcome coincidence that a single party majority government has come in the centre at the time when the country just laid out its National Transport Development Policy for the next 20 years. As per the policy, if India has to grow its GDP at 8-9%, it needs to increase its investment in infrastructure six times from current USD 45 billion to USD 250 billion by 2032. This translates increasing the investment in infrastructure from 5.8% of GDP (during 11th FYP) to 8% of GDP by the end of 2031-32

Investment of this scale would not only require significant government funding, but also building enabling environment to attract private capital, domestically as well as foreign. This would require government to take quick, planned and timely reforms across levels – policy, operational, institutional and capacity.

Urgent need for investment

According to the Global Competitiveness Report 2013-14 of World Economic Forum, India stands at 85th and 61st position in the global ranking of infrastructure and transport, respectively amongst group of 148 countries.

Since, investment in infrastructure sector, particularly transportation has multiplier effect on the economic growth; there is an urgent need for investment in these sectors to bring back economy on high growth trajectory. Hence, when the new government will table its first budget in July, 2014, it will have to strike balance between the prevailing inflation and long waiting reforms to remobilize funds in the transportation sector, which shall lay foundation for a long-term growth. For example in highways, there is an immediate need to rebalance the concession agreements, to move the struck projects and attract private sector interest in the upcoming projects.

Concept of revenue guarantees, as being used in some of the Latin American and developed countries, where government shares with private sector, both upside potential and downside risk of traffic, beyond a threshold, should be brought in to attract investor confidence and lender’s comfort.

At the same time it is important for NHAI, if it is moving to EPC model, to build its own pool of resources. For this purpose, fast tracking implementation of electronic toll collection to maximize toll revenues and raising funds through long-term bonds and capitalize its toll revenue earnings for interest and principal repayments, can be explored. In fact, India can learn from experience of Japanese Expressway Holding and Debt Repayment Agency, which used bond funds to develop expressways in Japan. These bonds were duly backed by government guarantees to provide security to bond subscriber.

Special Projects for Rural Development

To increase penetration in villages, particularly for effective implementation of food security, it is critical to continue fillip programs like Pradhan Mantri Gram Sadak Yojana (PMGSY-II), which are critical for farm to market linkages and connectivity to rural growth centres.

An Integrated Transport System

Probably, it is right time for the government to think transport as an integrated system and all its components (rail, road, port and airways) should work in a holistic manner. Different modes of transport between two nodes should be developed based on the principles of demand-supply and balance between time and fuel cost. For instance, if time is not a constraint (non-perishable goods), goods can be transported using IWT or coastal shipping.To achieve this, coastal terminals at select ports and deeper stretches of the rivers (LAD) can be developed. For other routes, rail and road connectivity with ports should be enhanced on PPP basis.

Develop low-cost Airports

Similarly, low-cost airports in tier-II and tier-III cities can be developed which can be integrated with high speed rails at select stretches. This will provide faster connectivity to the entire country and thereby unlock growth potential .To move goods through airport, similar to inland ports and container depots, off-airport cargo processing facilities can be developed.

Moreover, these facilities to be ably augmented by cold chains in the vicinity of low cost airports, which can facilitate warehousing and dispatching cargo of perishable goods. This will help reduce congestion and delays at airports. Development of such off-airport facilities can be defined as infrastructure and the respective benefits should be extended accordingly.

E-vehicles to Boost Urban Transportation

There is also a need to boost urban transport within the cities. In this regard, recent announcement of government to treat e-rickshaws with motor power of 650mw as non-motorised vehicles in the NCR is a welcome step. However, government will have to be mindful that although e-rickshaws are environment friendly, their use should not go out of proportions to increase congestion in already cramped up roads.

Hence, government should promote setting up of state level funding agencies to finance urban transport projects. Central government should facilitate states setting up such bodies and providing government guarantees to securing funds from international financial institutions.

Implementation through Fiscal Incentives

However, to effectively execute the above ideas, it is also important to back them by suitable fiscal incentives. Some of these include:

– relaxation of ECB norms for borrowing by infrastructure companies,

– extension of tax incentives on major augmentation of existing infrastructure, in particular Maintenance, Repair and Overhaul (‘MRO’) services in airlines,

– extension of depreciation on expenditure incurred to develop public assets on BOT, which is not owned by

private sector, even for the sector other than roads

– exemption of MAT for infrastructure sector during 80IA period.

At the outset, there is a lot to be done, which poses a big challenge, but also presents an opportunity for the government for creating much needed transport infrastructure for doing business. Although, industry expects government to respond timely on the above hard-pressed reforms, in the upcoming budget Government will have to strike balance between its

revenues and easing of complex net of regulations and approvals to enhance the value-addition process and making us more competitive. .

Source:The Economic Times

Written by ITW Editor · Filed Under About, Blogs, developement

Municipality to develop green cover on highway

July 24, 2014

Soon, people travelling on Chennai-Bangalore Highway will enjoy better green cover on a portion of it.

The Poonamallee municipality has set the ball rolling for a project to develop a green belt along a four-km stretch.

As part of its efforts to beautify the stretch and prevent illegal dumping of waste on the roadside, the municipality has joined hands with corporates to survey the area.

Chennai:A core committee, comprising corporates and municipal officials, has been formed to chalk out an action plan to beautify the stretch between Doosan company and the BSNL office falling under the local body’s jurisdiction.

The beautification project will include developing the greenery and illumination along the roadsides.

Officials of the municipality said estimates are being prepared to develop a green belt. The number of encroachments is also being identified.

Municipal commissioner B.V. Surendra Sha said the local body has sought the assistance of industries in and around Poonamallee to take up the beautification of the stretch as a CSR initiative.

Residents of Seneerkuppam and Poonamallee want the local body to speed up the project as garbage is being dumped along the Cooum river and road margins.

“We are planning to use 10 metres of space on roadsides for the project and also rope in corporates to maintain the facilities,” he said.

The work will be completed in two months with the consent of the National Highways Authority of India. The municipality also plans to develop green cover in Poonamallee at a cost of Rs. 5 lakh.

Source: The Hindu

Written by ITW Editor · Filed Under About

Panels to select places to install more security cameras

July 23, 2014

Coimbatore:City Police Commissioner A.K. Viswanathan said that efforts are under way to make all the 184 closed circuit television (CCTV) cameras installed at traffic signals across the city, work as intended.

Better surveillance

“Efforts are under way for identifying more places where more CCTV cameras could be installed in the city for better surveillance to reduce crime,” he said.

The CCTV cameras and 23 speed dome cameras were allotted to Coimbatore City police during the World Classical Tamil Conference in 2010.

A police official in the city claimed that only 14 of the 184 cameras were functioning.

Deputy Commissioner of Police (Law and Order) Pravesh Kumar said that all these cameras were in working condition. “Only the cables connecting them are faulty,” he added.

A sum of Rs.5 lakh was allotted by the government for maintaining these cameras.

Poor maintenance

But due to poor maintenance, the amount has not been given to the company that has taken up the annual maintenance contract (AMC) to keep the cameras working.

“Due to this reason, the contract was cancelled recently. We are in the process of identifying a new AMC contractor,” police officials said.

“On the other hand, some private companies have come forward to erect such cameras in select places. Committees have been formed under Deputy Commissioners for Law and Order, besides Crime and Traffic, to identify places where the cameras could be installed for better surveillance.

The cameras will be monitored from the police stations in the vicinity,” Mr. Viswanathan added.

Source:The Hindu

Written by ITW Editor · Filed Under About, Andhra Pradesh, CCTV Surveillance

Motorcycle rallies on ‘road safety’

July 23, 2014

A rally being taken out by Transport Officials as part of the Traffic Awareness Week on the Beach Road in Visakhapatnam on Tuesday. Photo: C.V. Subrahmanyam

The Hindu A rally being taken out by Transport Officials as part of the Traffic Awareness Week on the Beach Road in Visakhapatnam on Tuesday.

The maximum number of accidents occurring on the roads involved youth. Their rash behaviour, tendency to take risks and not adhering to safety rules like wearing helmets and seat belts is contributing to an increase in accidents on the roads.

The Transport Department organised motorcycle rallies to sensitise motorists on the need to wear helmets and seat belts as part of the ongoing road safety awareness campaign on Tuesday.

Minister Ganta Srinivasa Rao inaugurated the rally on the Beach Road by riding a motorcycle, wearing a helmet. He said it was unfortunate that many youngsters were losing their lives in road accidents due to their risky behaviour like performing feats, over speeding and not following the rules. The fatalities were more due to not wearing helmets by motorcyclists and not wearing the seat belts by car users.

Deputy Transport Commissioner M. Prabhu Raj Kumar said that even the slightest negligence on the road could cause fatal accidents. He called upon parents not to buy motorcycles for their children till they are 18 years in age. The department has intensified checking of school buses following a rise in the number of accidents involving school buses.

Newly recruited women Assistant MVIs of the Transport Department drove motorcycles wearing helmets. One of them even drove a ‘Bullet’. The motorcycle rally, which began at the Kali temple went up to The Park hotel junction and returned to the starting point. The participants distributed pamphlets on road safety to passers by.

Later in the evening, another rally was taken out from Jagadamba junction to NAD Kotha Road and back.

Regional Transport Officer A.H. Khan, MVIs M. Kanaka Raju, K.V. Prakash and M. Butchi Raju were among those who participated in the programme.

Source: The Hindu

Written by ITW Editor · Filed Under About, Andhra Pradesh

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