Mumbai to invest Rs80,000 cr on high-speed urban rail network
10 May 2017
Stopped in the slow tracks of Indian Railways' suburban transport network, Mumbai, India's richest city, is planning an overhaul of its transport system by setting up a high-speed urban rail network, with total investments of up to Rs80,000 crore.
The project is expected to see top high-speed railway system manufacturers such as Alstom, Bombardier, Siemens vying for orders upto Rs48,000 crore ($7.5 billion) for rail coaches and systems, according to reports.
The project involves construction of a 190-km high-speed rail network, including 33.5-km of mostly underground railway along with six elevated lines, over the next six years, UPS Madan, chief of the Mumbai Metropolitan Region Development Authority (MMRDA), said.
Mumbai, a mega city with a population of more than 18 million, still travels at speeds around 70 kmph and a major overhaul of its transport system can only be done by setting up a parallel high-speed urban rail network.
The local units of rail transport systems makers such as Alstom SA, Bombardier Inc and Siemens AG are set to bid for contracts to supply rail coaches, signaling and electrical systems as well as other non-civil works.
Chinese and Indian companies have also shown interest in the project, said Madan.
Reports quoting the head of Siemens' mobility solutions, Tilak Raj Seth, said his company will be looking for supplying all electrical and mechanical systems in the entire metro project.
Alstom, Bombardier and Siemens are all keen to supply rail coaches, rolling stock, signalling and other electrical components which, according to Madan, make up about 60 per cent of the total cost of the Mumbai metro project.
The three companies are particularly interested in MMRDA projects in view of the speed of decision making and the volume of business.
Besides, the anticipated orders from MMRDA, urban rail networks coning up across the country is an added attraction to system suppliers.
Mumbai's suburban rail network has a current capacity to carry 7 million commuters daily. The new system will double this, according to Madan.
"We are doubling the railways transporting capacity in the city," Madan said. "It is going in areas which are hitherto not connected to public transport."