CHENNAI: Even as the Metropolitan Transport Corporation (Chennai) Ltd is busy processing tender applications to select an internationally renowned company to implement the monorail project in the city on a design, build, own, operate and transfer (DBOOT) basis and an advisor to select the prospective project implementing agency, there are divergent views over the utility of the proposed project.

Technocrats are of the view that the project, popularly known as the "poor man's metro" in the West, is yet to be tested as a mainline metro system anywhere in the world. Monorail is being used only as feeder service in all the countries where it is in operation. Only in Japan does the monorail cover over 100 km. In Malaysia, Australia and United States it runs for less than 100 km. The capacity of the monorail is also limited. It can carry a maximum of 90 to 130 passengers in a trip as against the about 900 passengers in metro rail services.

Operational problems likely

They pointed out that there will be operational problems in the monorail system as it will be at the "mercy of foreign companies" for coaches and spare parts for trouble-free operation of services. But, it was cheaper when compared to the elevated metro or tube rail system. The elevated metro rail costs from Rs.80 crore to Rs.100 crore a km, and the tube rail system about Rs.150 crore a km. In the case of monorail the cost is Rs.50 crore a km.

The monorail, they said, ran on simple, inexpensive elevated tracks that could be constructed, installed and operated without making a major impact on existing neighbourhoods, unlike the elevated metro or tube rail system, which would cause heavy traffic disruption during the construction period.

The monorail was as safe as any other elevated or tube rail system and the number of accidents in towns where the monorail was in service was extremely low, they said.

V.K. Agarwal of Rail India Technical and Economic Services (RITES) said the monorail could be an effective alternative to road transport. The gestation period for the system was much smaller than for the other systems. The Chandigarh administration appointed RITES as advisor for implementing the monorail project in the city. The Delhi Metro was thinking of monorail feeder services in congested areas of the city where it was not possible to implement a metro or tube rail project.

N. Kritivasan, former General Manager of Southern Railway, who was instrumental in conceiving the Mass Raid Transit System (MRTS) for Chennai, said the system was suitable where there were narrow roads and sharp curves. It was an ideal replacement for bus services, especially to the interior areas of a city. It could be executed without any disruption. But, its carrying capacity was much less when compared to a metro or tube rail.

Vijayalakshmi Viswanathan, former Financial Commissioner, Railway Board, was also of the opinion that it could serve more as a feeder service and that its carrying capacity at the maximum could be 8,000 passengers an hour.

Pattali Makkal Katchi, the first political party to oppose the project, has alleged that the project would only help foreign companies to increase their production capacity. As the system is to be operated by a private party, the fares would be "exorbitant". However, the Metropolitan Transport Corporation (Chennai) Ltd, the implementing authority of the project, in its terms and conditions clearly stated that the project should have a minimum carrying capacity of 15,000 peak passengers per hour per direction (PPHPD) upgradable to 50,000 soon. Going by the segments selected by the Corporation the system should be operated both in the main arteries and suburban areas. Another reason for selecting the monorail was its small gestation period.

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