After elevated metro rail, get ready for another elevated public transport experience with the government planning to build an Elevated Bus Rapid Transit System (EBRTS) corridor from KPHB to Financial District in Gachibowli.
The 18-20 km elevated corridor is to pass through HiTec City MMTS station, HICC, Hitex, move towards MindSpace junction, Gachibowli and halt at Narsingi before the Outer Ring Road (ORR). Electric articulated twin/three buses joined by a vestibule are to be exclusively run on this corridor which will connect all top IT/ITES firms in the Financial District through ramps, according to official sources.
There will be stations at half-kilometre gap, unlike metro rail which has a station for every kilometre, and average speed of the articulated buses could be 28-30 kmph. Stations too will be elevated but the viaduct for the EBRTS will be at a much lesser height of little over 5.5 metres with piers and elevated to be thinner with eight-metre width to accommodate two bus lanes.
“It will cost us about one-third cost of the metro rail at about ₹140 crore per km and the entire project is likely to cost about ₹2,400 crore. It will be built under the Public, Private Partnership mode (PPP) without requiring the Centre’s Viability Gap Funding (VGF). Infrastructure investors have been sounded about the project,” they explained.
Special purpose vehicle
Hyderabad Airport Metro Ltd (HAML), the special purpose vehicle formed to build metro up to the Shamshabad airport, is the facilitating agency to build this new public transport system to cater to the new growth regions in association with TS Industrial Infrastructure Corporation (TSIIC) and Hyderabad Metropolitan Development Authority (HMDA).
“It will take about six months to finalise the bids and from then on the project could get completed in three years as no land acquisition is required,” they said. EBRTS will also be connecting metro rail Corridor 1 (Miyapur-L.B. Nagar) at the KPHB, Corridor 3 (Nagole-HiTec City/Raidurg) at MindSpace junction and also the Airport metro line being planned at Narsingi.
“We have called for Request for Proposal (RFP) for selecting a consultant for preparing a Detailed Project Report (DPR) for the EBRTS corridor. Technical and financial bids will be called once the report is ready,” said HAML managing director N.V.S. Reddy.