Kochi Metro Rail Limited (KMRL) will conduct a feasibility study to operate ‘light trams’ in the 6.2-km M.G. Road-Menaka-Park Avenue Road-Jos Junction-M.G. Road-Thevara loop line corridor. It would be followed by preparation of a detailed project report (DPR), it was decided on Tuesday.
Earlier in the day, a meeting was held in Kochi by officials of the metro agency with their counterparts from HESS Green Mobility that implemented the light tram service in Brisbane and many other parts of the world. They also visited the route to get a first-hand idea about the possibility of operating light trams, an improvised version of the bus rapid transport (BRT) system, in the loop line of the Kochi metro.
The route was ideal to have a light tram network, officials of HESS Green Mobility said, based on their preliminary assessment, according to metro sources. “If realised, this would become a feeder loop line for the Kochi metro, helping improve patronage. It would also benefit people from Thevara and the densely populated West Kochi region. This loop line using light trams will also help link the metro’s M.G. Road station with the Water Metro ferry terminal near the High Court,” said KMRL Managing Director Loknath Behera.
