Even after the formation of a special working group chaired by Transport Minister A.K. Saseendran, the implementation of the proposed multimodal mobility hub in the city has lost steam, in the absence of proper follow-up actions. The ₹122-crore proposal, which was approved by the State Cabinet and later included in the budget for the preparation of a detailed project report, remains on paper.
It was in 2013 that the Regional Transport Office came up with the proposal for a mobility hub, taking into account the city’s ever increasing traffic problems and the need to have a spacious location between Malaparamba and Thondayad junctions that could accommodate over 3,000 cars, 2,000 motorcycles, 200 buses and 200 contract carriages. The proposal, which was scrutinised by a panel of experts from the National Institute of Technology, Calicut (NIT-C), was found feasible by the district administration and the district-level road safety authority.
Motor Vehicles Department (MVD) sources said the Revenue authorities earlier entrusted with the responsibility of finalising a convenient spot were failing in their efforts. “Even after the formation of a joint team comprising departments such as local administration, public works, registration and agriculture for the fast execution of the project, no progress was noticed over the last five years,” they claimed.
KIIFB funds
MVD sources said the plan to complete the project with financial support from the Kerala Infrastructure Investment Fund Board (KIIFB) proved futile due to the delay in getting possession of the required 20 acres of land for the project.
The idea to tap public-private partnership in the venture was also put on hold following the lukewarm response on the part of potential investors.
Public Works Department sources said there were two mobility hub proposals in Kerala, in Kozhikode and Alappuzha, taking into account the demand for better traffic management facilities in both the districts. However, the unexpected monsoon calamities and the subsequent changes in the government’s priorities were indirectly affecting several pre-planned development projects, including the mobility hubs, they claimed.
The delay in earmarking a specific fund in the budget also hit the speedy implementation of the project, according to some officials who were part of the preparation of the project blueprint. The project had proposed a lot of attractive facilities such as rooftop helipad, exhibition centres, food courts, luxury accommodation, cloakroom, cinema theatres and a skywalk facility connecting all the proposed six transport terminals. All those would be possible only with an initial investment on the part of the government, they added.