The PTR light rail project was put back on track under the name of express metro, but we all remember the famous letter sent to Naraindra Modi, the Indian Prime Minister in 2014, where the opposition leader then expressed his apprehensions regarding the project.
It is worth noting that the famous letter had a heading “Leader of the Opposition” and the address was “Sun Trust Building”
Now that the project has been launched with great fanfare, and we are told that the project will cost less than Rs.20 billion, the following questions are worth asking:
- How much will the final cost of the project be? Rs.54 billion as predicted by the consumer association?
- Does the budget include the compensation that will be paid to those whose land falls under compulsory acquisition?
- How long will the journey take with the 19 stations?
- And the cost of the ticket, taking into account safety, comfort and other essential amenities, eg air conditioning of the trains
- And electricity consumption? Will we be connected to the CEB network?
- Will the CEB be able to provide the necessary energy? and at what price?
- Will the pollution created by the production of energy for the express metro be higher than that produced by cars and buses? The carbon footprint?
- Was there an EIA – Environment Impact Assessment on the construction and operation of the express metro, even if the developer was exempt from the regulations?
- Or will everything end up being rethought as in the case of Heritage City?
A.J.
