21.12.08

PCMC BRTS snippets


The first Bus Rapid Transit System (BRTS) pilot in the country, in Pune, had proved to be a damp squib. And in Delhi, the BRTS didn’t exactly draw rave reviews. But in Pimpri-Chinchwad, the BRTS holds much promise. It is set to usher in a slew of ancillary benefits over and above the basic service of fast bus service, like lamp-posts, kiosks and special seating areas.Pimpri-Chinchwad is looking to the BRTS to make its roads better lit as around 11,220 specially designed lampposts will be erected on seven of the eight BRTS corridors.Kiosks and seating spaces would be constructed on the footpath near bus stops. Also, landscaping would be done on the wide central divider between bus lanes. This will be a huge improvement for those stretches like the Pune-Alandi road that do not have streetlights at many places.“The new lamp posts would have aesthetic designs and would add to the architectural beauty of the road. We have short-listed three designs for the 14.4km stretch on the Aundh-Ravet BRTS corridor. Unlike the yellow lights on the Nigdi-Dapodi BRTS route, we are planning to use highpressured ionized tube with white light. “The kiosks would be built near the bus stops on the eight BRTS stretches. Facilities like telephone and other communication systems would be provided in these kiosks,” said Dilip Kudale, coordinator (Engineering) for JNNRUM.The Aundh-Ravet stretch is scheduled to be ready in the next 18 months. In all around 112 km will be covered under BRTS corridors in Pimpri-Chinchwad. Three lamp-posts would be erected with two lights on each side, one on the central divider, the other two on both the sides of the road on the divider between the cycle track and mixeduse lanes would be constructed on the 10-lane roads. These would be the erected at a distance of 30 metre each. “We also have an option of using those kiosks for the wifi facility coming up in Pimpri Chinchwad,” said Neelkanth Poman, office-incharge, JNNURM cell.

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