Continuing the government's focus on infrastructure development, Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman, who presented the Union Budget 2021-22 on February 1, said emphasis will be laid on the expansion of the metro rail network across the country.
Metro rail network of 702 km is already operational across the country, and another 1,600 km of metro rail network is under construction in 27 cities, said Sitharaman.
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Two new technologies will be deployed in Tier 2 cities and peripheral areas of Tier 1 cities to build metro connectivity at lower cost and higher safety in Tier 2 cities, she added.
She announced Rs 14,788 crore for the expansion of the Bengaluru Metro by 58.19 km.
Chennai Metro Phase 2 will be built at a cost of almost Rs 62,000 crore, she announced.
According to statistics made available by the Ministry of Housing and Urban Affairs, metro rail network in the country is operational in 18 cities with a network of approximately 702 km. The construction work of metro rail/RRTS is presently on in 27 cities.
The approved metro rail network, including Regional Rapid Transit System (RRTS), is 1,718 kms. The daily metro rail ridership in the country before COVID-19 pandemic went up to 85 lakh passengers.
The Metro Rail Policy 2017 was brought in for systematic planning and implementation of metro rail systems and to act as a guide to state governments for preparing comprehensive metro rail proposals for enhancing mobility in cities.
The ministry also issued standard specifications for Light Urban Rail Transit System called MetroLite to cater to the mobility needs of smaller cities with lower ridership. It also issued standard specifications for rail guided, rubber tyred electric coaches powered by overhead traction system named MetroNeo in November 2020, suitable for smaller cities with lower projection of ridership.
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