Fly to your destination, sky's the limit

KOLKATA: The Danes have come, the Swedish have proposed, the Germans have given their presentations - all to ease the traffic congestion in the city.
However, now it is the turn of an absolutely indigenous corporation, the Konkan Railways (KR), to try and put some respite in the city''s traffic choked arteries.
As recent as ten days back, the KR authorities had met the West Bengal transport officials in Kolkata and presented to them the feasibility of setting up sky buses as an alternative mode of transport in the city.KR is currently preparing for the launch of a sky bus route in Madgaon, Goa on a 1.6 kms stretch, where Bengal officials will be present for a live demonstration.
This modern new concept invented and indigenously developed by Konkan Railway Corporation of Indian Railways is referred to as “suspended technology�. In Mumbai, infact, authorities had approved the launch of the service on three routes: Andheri West to Ghatkopar West, Andheri to Charkop and Bandra to Kurla routes in the north of the city.
The fully automatic Sky Bus coaches are suspended on rails raised about 8 metres to 10 metres from the ground or roads. They provide an innovative, eco-friendly and cost-effective solution to ever-growing transportation problems of metros and big cities, the system would essentially look like a flyover, with cable-car-like coaches suspended from it.
"The positive points of the project is that it requires no or very less land for the stations and the depot. It causes no pollution as it runs on electricity. Since it is elevated it will move faster too and congestion on the ground will lessen as well", pointed out Chief engineer of traffic and transporting, B K Sadhu.
The advantages of these sky buses are that they are two-car and driver-less and thus runs few risks of accidents, has very low capital cost and high carrying capacity. KR sources further pointed out that while elevated tracks for ring railways cost around Rs 90 crore per km, and underground tracks cost around Rs 200 crore per km, the sky bus project will cost only Rs 35 crore per km.
KR, a part government organisation has been marketing the project carefully and professionally, admits state transport officials.They have shown officials examples of the coaches, to be made by Bharat Earth Movers Limited (BEML) and the elevated stations. "The skybus project, has the promise of all international projects that has been proposed in the city in the last six months. Moreover it is indigeneous and less expensive," pointed out a transport official.
However, the state is yet to decide on the project and they are holding back any decision till the live demonstration in Goa.