Hyderabad: Trams to ease traffic

Hyderabad: The GHMC proposes to introduce “new generation” trams to enhance public connectivity. The project would be either taken up under the public private partnership (PPP) or in build operate transfer (BoT) mode as per the sister cities agreement entered into by the state government with Bourdeaux in France in 2015.

The project will be first taken up in the IT and Musi corridor to minimise the use of private vehicles to ease traffic snarls.

Officials said that a delegation from Keolis, a France-based multinational company, would visit the city to negotiate the project and sign a memorandum of understanding.

Highly placed sources in the corporation said that according to the plans, the trams would add connectivity to the Metro Rail and their average speed would be about 25 kmph. Sources said Keolis was already running a tram service in Melbourne.

A senior GHMC official, on condition of anonymity, said that since the Metro Rail construction from Nagole to Miyapur had been completed, the tram services would be taken up in this corridor first to increase last mile connectivity.

He said that the ticket fare for the non-AC trams would be Rs 6 and AC trams Rs 16 from boarding point to the destination irrespective of the distance.

The GHMC official said that officials from the company were in touch with the corporation and they would arrive in the city by September end to conduct a feasibility study and social impact assessment study.