NCRTC invites leading mobility players to provide feeder modes at RRTS stations

NEW DELHI: To ensure last-mile connectivity to commuters using the Regional Rapid Transit System on the Delhi-Ghaziabad-Meerut corridor, the NCRTC has invited leading mobility players to provide various feeder modes at stations, an official statement said. The National Capital Region Transport Corporation (NCRTC) is implementing India’s first RRTS which is a rail-based, high-speed, high-frequency regional commuter transit system.

Delhi-Ghaziabad-Meerut is an 82-km-long RRTS corridor having 25 stations at a gap of around 5-6 km, where trains will operate at a frequency of 5-10 minutes to cover the distance from Delhi to Meerut in less than an hours’ time.

According to statement, since the 17-km long priority section between Sahibabad and Duhai that has five stations will become operational by 2023, the process of exploring various options for last-mile connectivity for commuters has been set in motion.

The NCRTC has taken into consideration the global parameters of the distance of last-mile connectivity travelled by commuters and the modes of transport used by them, it said.

It said the distance up to 500 metres area is often walkable and the distance up to one km falls in cycling zone.

However, the distance up to 3 km requires the services of e-rickshaw, bike taxis or scooter rentals while distance of more than 3 km is considered as the zone of auto-rikshaw, taxi/cab and shuttle bus, it said.

“The NCRTC after deliberation has extended an invite to the mass providers of these various modes of transportation. It will also take the help of other agencies, where necessary to push it into action.

“This initiative will ensure fast, organised, green and affordable variety of commute options and door to door connectivity. It will also create varied opportunities for mobility providers at RRTS stations in Delhi, Sahibabad, Ghaziabad, Murad Nagar, Modinagar and Meerut,” the statement said.

It said people often hesitate to use public transport because of the unavailability of last-mile connectivity. Also, the congestion around the stations due to the lack of any organised system for autos and e-rickshaws not only creates chaos and traffic jams but also leads to an increase in commute time, it added.

“In line with its aim to encourage people to switch to public transport from their private vehicles and to provide a solution for the traffic problem, the NCRTC came up with the plan to facilitate last-mile connectivity for commuters through various feeder modes at stations,” the statement said.

The statement said the NCRTC will adopt a QR code-based ticketing (Digital QR and Paper QR) and EMV (Europay, Mastercard, Visa) open loop contactless card-based National Common Mobility Card (NCMC) standards.

“Thus, RRTS commuters will be able to use any NCMC card issued by any Metro or Transport Authority for commute,” it added.

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