The Time is not far when Rajasthan will emerge as a futuristic state of the country. With many innovative village area schemes, cities will also savour the visions of Modi govt. and CM Raje. Six states of the country conducted discussion with companies to arrange a system of PRTs (Personal Rapid Transport) in India. Under this, they strive to introduce driver-less vehicles in these states. Rajasthan is nowhere lacking in this as they are planning a link between Ajmer Railway station and Ajmer Dargah which will be 4.7 kms.
Along with Ajmer, the pink city, Jaipur will also be considered as a spot for this. Apart from this, other cities with pod taxi sites will be Thiruvananthpuram, Dehradun and Gurugram.
Maharashtra, one of the most crowded state is also taking keen interest in the project and is considering to cover areas from Bandra to Mumbai business district of Bandra Kurla Complex.
One of the official from the center said, “Maharashtra, Kerala, Rajasthan, Haryana, Uttarakhand and Bihar have already initiated talks with the firms selling this technology and are either in the process of inviting expression of interests or have invited them “.
Interestingly, India will be the first country to form a panel for standardizing the PRT system. This will be formed by the Union road transport and highway ministry. The transport system is specially designed for cities in which electric pods are expelled from aloft and overhead rail.
The vehicles are moved by the electric ropes to which the pods are attached. You will be amazed to know that these pods remain 5-10 meters above from the earth which makes them detached from the ground.
Nitin Gadkari, the minister state transport and highways of India highlighted the fact that, the pod taxi project is more economical than metro. While metro project cost Rs. 250 crore per km, the pod taxi project costs Rs. 50 crore per km.
It is evident and apparent that in last three years, the living standards of people in Rajasthan have seen upliftment. With this, people expect a more cosy and hassle-free transport mode and thus are switching to cars and taxis. To make the mass transit system a trend again, the state government is putting endeavours to bring pod taxis in the state.
