If you love that joy ride in elevated cable cars at the theme parks and if you live in Bengaluru then here’s good news for you- a Pod taxi system in the city. The Bruhat Bengaluru Mahanagre Palike (BBMP) is planning to roll out pod taxis in Bangalore
Personal rapid transit. Image courtesy Skybum
Yes, you heard it right. Once BBMP executes its plan you can go to smaller distances hanging on cables looking down at the congested streets of Bengaluru. No need to wait for hours in traffic and give that murderous look to the person honking from behind.
Pod Taxi in Bangalore – Routes
The Pod taxi or the Personal Rapid Transit has been proposed on six stretches for the first round of execution of the plan. The routes decided for the Pod taxis are –
- Trinity Circle to Leela Palace, Old Airport (4-Km)
- Leela Palace to Marathahalli (6-Kms)
- Marathahalli to EPIP, Graphite India Road, Whitefield (6.5-Km)
- Trinity Circle to Koramangala (7.1-Km)
- Jayanagar 5th Block to J.P.Nagar 7th Phase (5.3-Km)
- Sony World Junction to Indiranagar Metro station (6.7-Km)
Pod Taxis in Bangalore –Proposed Stations
On calculating the up and down routes, the pod taxi route is proposed for about 70-Kms. A total number of 21,000 pods have been planned for the whole route. And 12 major PRT Stations have been chosen to be built. The proposed PRT stations for the pod taxis of first round are –
- Agram
- Domlur
- Hotel Leela Palace
- BEML
- HAL Airport
- Ferns City (Marathahalli)
- Gandhi Nagar
- Brookfield
- Parimala Sunridge
- Nallurahalli
- Virginia Mall
- Whitefield
Each Pod is supposed to accommodate 6 passengers and take them to their destinations at a speed of 60-Kmph.
The pod taxi in Bangalore project is planned to build and operated as a partnership between public and private sector. The financing is proposed to be taken care of entirely by the private sector and then run the project in collaboration with the BBMP.
Bangalore Palace Image courtesy TripTrack
Pod Taxis in Bangalore – Answer to the City’s Traffic Woes
According to the report submitted by the Indian Institute of Science (IISC) and the Centre for infrastructure, Sustainable Transport and Urban Planning (CiSTUP) the plan proposed by BBMP is feasible and can at least be started as a pilot project. It has also stated that the Pod system of a taxi can only be a complementary system of transport for the Bengaluru’s urban conglomerate. The needs of mobility of the city are growing rapidly so no single public transport can fulfill the need of mobility. The pod taxis in Bangalore can be a good complement to the existing modes of public transport.
A Futuristic Plan
Though the majority of the people are considering it a project far away from the ground reality, the reports of IISC and invitation to collaboration from two American and a Singaporean Company has given the ray of hope to the locals. Many are looking forward with positivity to this futuristic plan of the BBMP while there are many others who suggest that the BBMP should consider integrating the existing public transports of the city rather than painting a dream picture.
If the dream project of BBMP becomes a reality, Bengaluru will become the first city in India to have the Pod taxi system. Not only India but the city will gain a recognition in the world as most of the big and modernized cities of the world do not have such facility for serving as a public transport; the system is used at most of the places only as a joy ride.
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