The contrasting Choices of Metro and Suburban Rail
- In Current Affairs
- 08:12 PM, Oct 22, 2017
- Prathap Krishnan
“Fifty cities in India are ready to implement metro rail projects.” said Prime Minister Narendra Modi while inaugurating the metro in Cochin (present day Kochi) [1]. The number of urban agglomerations in India with a population of at least 1 million according to the 2011 census stood at 52 [2]. As far as planning goes, this seems far-sighted which should augur well for the sector and the country. However, does one size fit all? Is the metro the magic pill for urban public transportation by rail? Is the suburban EMU (Electric Multiple Unit) rail not as good an option if not better? Let us examine these contrasting choices.
The most successful metro in the country and by far at this point is the one in Delhi having a network length of 218km [3] with a daily ridership of 2.76 million people [4] while the most successful suburban rail is the one in Bombay (present day Mumbai) has a system length of around 465km with a daily ridership of over 7.5 million people [5],[6]. One could argue, the suburban system in Bombay is much older and therefore has an advantage but the numbers are incredible even accounting for that. Both cities have the suburban and the metro as well respectively although one system dwarfs the other. The ring railway in Delhi laid in 1974 and upgraded in 1982 has for multiple reasons begun to slip into wilderness with ridership of only a few thousands a day [7]. Additionally, the Northern Railway and North Central Railway also runs around 110 EMU services on tracks shared with passenger rail [8],[9]. The MMOPL (Mumbai Metro One Private Limited), a toddler by comparison has an impressive ridership of 3.55 lakh per day [10] but has still fallen short of the 5.13 lakh target. In fact, the Mumbai Metro has made losses of approximately Rs 277 and Rs 287 crores for years 2014-15 and 2015-16 respectively [11]. The writer was unable to find data for the same time period for the suburban railway. However, according to the CAG report published in 2016, the losses for the Western and Central railway suburban combined for the years 2010-11 to 2013-14 stood at Rs 625, 660, 856 and 1112 crores respectively [12]. Although significant, the losses for the suburban system does not seem so bad compared to the roughly Rs 280 crore losses for the metro considering that the network length for the suburban system is around 465 km [5],[6] as opposed to the metro at a mere 11.4 km [13]. Additionally, even the Delhi metro despite being hailed hugely successful has incurred losses of approximately Rs 91, 100 and 105 crores for the years 2012-13 to 2014-15 [14], [15]. For the year 2015-16, its loss shot up to Rs 708 crores [15]!
Let us turn our attention how other cities are faring. The metro in Bangalore, in 2015-16, after the opening of the underground section of its Purple line witnessed an average ridership of around 1.3 lakhs per day [16]. The metro’s loss for the year 2015-16 stood at Rs 360 crores with about 30km (both lines combined) being operational [16]. The ridership crossed the 3 lakh mark after the inauguration of the Sampige Road-Yelachenahalli stretch (which completed the phase-I network of 42km) was launched a few months ago and the ridership expected to cross 5 lakh in the next few months [17]. The Jaipur metro which has been in operation for a little over two years is on the other end of the scale. Having started off with a ridership of close to 26,000 per day in its first year, it has fallen to around 22,500 per day in its second [18]. In the year 2015-16, having started its operations in June, 2015 made losses of around Rs 70 crores [19] on its 9.6km Mansarovar to Chandpole line. It would be interesting to see how these two cities with contrasting ridership fortunes perform financially in the coming years. Neither Bangalore nor Jaipur boast of a full-fledged suburban network.
The metro rail in Madras (present day Chennai) has not tasted success either. With a current operational length of 27km after the recent inauguration of the underground stretch [20], the ridership which was hovering around a poor 12,000 per day prior to the launch of the underground stretch has improved to around 24,000 per day [21]. The target ridership of 7.75 lakh [22] remains a pipe dream if these numbers are anything to go by. However, like Bombay, the suburban system in Madras is a strong network of around 300km [23]. The ridership of around 1.1 million per day [24] may pale in comparison to its counterpart in Bombay but is still so much better than the metro even accounting for network lengths. In fact, all four lines of the suburban including the much maligned MRTS boast of a ridership of at least 100,000 a day [24].
At this point, there could be an argument that, the Delhi metro sees a much higher ridership than the Madras suburban with a lower network length. However, a couple of factors need to be accounted for. The Madras suburban runs 724 services a day [25]. The north line in Madras in particular, with less than 80 services a day sees poor frequency with trains plying with every half hour even during peak hours driving the public towards choosing their own transportation [24]. In comparison, the Delhi metro runs more than 3100 services per day [26] which is comparable to around 2900 services run on the suburban network in Bombay[5],[6]. Even the CMRL (Chennai Metro Rail Limited) currently operates nearly 300 services over its two lines has nearly a hundred service each line (around a hundred are inter-corridor) [27].
The second factor is the number of lines and length of each line. The network currently operates seven lines (including the Airport Express line) and the pink line (still under construction) would have a length of 59km, the longest for the network [28]. By contrast, the suburban in Madras has operates four lines and three of those are over 80km (the longest service being 109km) [23]. Indeed, one of the lines that starts from Moore Market Complex (Central Station) ends in Sulurpeta in Andhra Pradesh (81 kilometres away), making it the only suburban network in the country to operate in two states! That being said, the suburban system in Bombay is in a league of its own with route lengths exceeding 120kms!
The two factors discussed above combined hand the advantage to the Delhi metro in the writer’s opinion. Additionally, the Delhi metro also has a greater number of stations where one can switch lines. However, this must not be a negative point for long distance lines. They are without doubt better for commuters who travel those distances on a daily basis they are can reach their destination with fewer interchanges (in most cases it is zero or one) and are certainly the way to go for future suburban rail lines. Cross sectorial services offered by the Southern Railway (services between Velachery and Thiruvallur for example), further boost this advantage for commuters.
Let us now turn our attention to the financial aspect. The CMRL having begun its operations from 29th, June 2015 incurred a loss of Rs 71 crores for the year 2015-16 [29]. For the suburban network, the CAG report published in 2016 remains the best source of information and the suburban section of the Southern Railway incurred losses of Rs 277, 304, 316 and 371 crores in the years 2010-11 to 2013-14 [12]. Again, the losses for the suburban do not seem so bad in comparison to the metro considering the network lengths - nearly 300km for the suburban versus 10km for the metro (length in operation for 2015-16).
Now, let us move to the unique case of Calcutta (present day Kolkata) as unlike the other metro networks in the country, the 27km metro line in the city is operated by the Indian Railways [30]. Considering that only one line is in operation, the ridership is massive at 5.4 lakhs per day [31] and the metro is the second highest in terms of ridership behind Delhi. The suburban system with a network of over 1300km and several routes of over 100km, it is by far the biggest in the country [32]. With 3.1 million people using the system per day [31], the suburban is second only to Bombay in terms of ridership. In terms of ridership, the suburban also does better than the Delhi metro, although given the size of the network, this is on expected lines. However, the number of services at 1471 [33],[34] is still only around half that of Delhi metro and the Bombay suburban, making the ridership statistic even more impressive.
It is difficult to compare the suburban with the metro in Calcutta since both are managed by the Indian Railways and in some ways the metro is also considered to be part of the suburban system. However, it is interesting to compare the metro in Calcutta with other metros in the country. For instance, despite a higher ridership, the metro in the city runs 224 services a day [35] while the one in Bombay runs around 360 [36]. Even the metro in Bangalore which has an even lower ridership (both lines combined) operates more services in each of its lines - about 240 and 300 services in the green and purple line respectively [37].
A look at the financials of the Calcutta metro also reveals its numbers are comparable to that of the metro in Bombay with the former making losses of Rs 129, 225, 259, 294 and 299 crores through the years 2010-11 to 2014-15 [12] while the latter hovered around the Rs 280 crore mark for the years 2014-15 and 2015-16 [11]. Although the losses are marginally higher for the former, one needs to keep in mind its line length is more than twice as long (27km versus 11km).
The suburban system of Eastern and South Eastern railway which serve Calcutta have incurred a combined loss of Rs 1452, 1624, 1935 and 2184 crores through the years 2010-11 to 2013-14 [12]. These losses though staggering when viewed on their own are roughly proportional to the losses incurred by the Western and Central railways considering the network lengths in their respective jurisdictions.
Finally, a word about Hyderabad and Secunderabad, the only case where a suburban system is operational and the metro is still under construction and expected to start operations from late November,2017 [38]. With a network length of 43km [39], the MMTS (Multi Modal Transport System) is a dwarf compared to its well-entrenched counterparts in Bombay, Calcutta and Madras. The suburban sees a ridership of around 1.7 lakh people per day [40]. Some might be tempted to argue that the metro in Bangalore is more popular with a ridership of 3 lakhs per day [17] with a similar network length. However, a quick look at the number of services run on the MMTS demolishes that train of thought – a paltry 121 services for the suburban MMTS [39] compared to around 540 services [37] for the Bangalore metro! The financials for the suburban section of South Central Railway looks better as well – the suburban system incurring losses of Rs 36, 52, 61, 66 and 80 crores through the years 2010-11 to 2014-15 [12] while the Bangalore metro’s losses stood at Rs 263 and 360 crores for the years 2014-15 and 2015-16 [16].
Considering the statistics discussed so far, it appears that on average, the suburban is well ahead of the metro although it must be said that the suburban networks are also much older and therefore benefit somewhat as a result. However, there is very little evidence so far based on ridership to justify building metro networks all over the country.
In part-II of this article, construction costs of these two systems will be taken up and discussed.
REFERENCES:
- Speech by PM at the dedication of Kochi Metro to the Nation http://pib.nic.in/newsite/PrintRelease.aspx?relid=165707 , 17 June 2017, Accessed on 22 July 2017, Press Information Bureau, Government of India
- A -4 Towns And Urban Agglomerations Classified By Population Size Class In 2011 With Variation Since 1901 http://www.censusindia.gov.in/2011census/PCA/A4.html , Accessed on 22 July 2017, Office of the Registrar General & Census Commissioner, Ministry of Home Affairs, India
- ITO-Kashmere Gate Metro corridor flagged off for Passenger services http://www.delhimetrorail.com/press_reldetails.aspx?id=IWbtGYgpCw0lld , 28 May 2017, Accessed on 24 July 2017, Delhi Metro Rail Corporation Limited
- Delhi Metro's Cumulative Ridership for the financial year 2016-2017 crosses one billion (100 crores) http://www.delhimetrorail.com/press_reldetails.aspx?id=ZlXC4jMrU00lld , 30 March 2017, Accessed on 24 July 2017, Delhi Metro Rail Corporation Limited
- Western Railway, Mumbai Suburban, Know your suburban http://www.wr.indianrailways.gov.in/view_section.jsp?lang=0&id=0,6,629 , Last Updated on 30 September 2015, Accessed on 24 July 2017, Ministry of Railways, Government of India
- Central Railway http://www.cr.indianrailways.gov.in/view_section.jsp?lang=0&id=0,6,1191,1192,1394,1395,1414,1415 , Last Updated on 25 February 2011, Accessed on 24 July 2017, Ministry of Railways, Government of India
- Ring Railway left behind as Delhi swells beyond boundaries http://indianexpress.com/article/cities/delhi/ring-railway-in-an-ever-expanding-delhi-a-ghost-railway-service-lingers/ , Vishnu Varma, 11 March 2016, Accessed on 25 July 2017, The Indian Express
- 116 Delhi EMU Trains https://indiarailinfo.com/trains/delhiemu , Accessed on 08 August 2017, India Rail Info
- 10 Suburban Rail Service of India’s Major Cities http://www.walkthroughindia.com/walkthroughs/trains/10-suburban-rail-service-indias-major-cities/ , Accessed on 09 August 2017, Walk Through India
- Mumbai Metro Line 1: Even as ridership falls short of target, losses mount, hope floats on new lines http://www.financialexpress.com/industry/mumbai-metro-line-1-even-as-ridership-falls-short-of-target-losses-mount-hope-floats-on-new-lines/679208/ , Rouhan Sharma, 22 May 2017, Accessed on 09 August 2017, Financial Express, The Indian Express
- Independent Auditors Report to the owners of Mumbai Metro One Private Limited http://www.rinfra.com/pdf/Mumbai_Metro_One_Private_Limited_2015-16.pdf , Deloitte Haskins & Sells, LLP, 3 May 2016, Accessed on 10 August 2017
- Suburban Train Services in Indian Railways http://www.cag.gov.in/sites/default/files/audit_report_files/Union_Railways_Suburban_Train_Services_Report_14_2016.pdf , Comptroller and Auditor General of India, 2 June 2016, Report No. 14 of 2016, Accessed on 29 August 2017
- Mumbai Metro – Your Metro, Features http://www.reliancemumbaimetro.com/features.html , Accessed on 29 August 2017, Reliance Metro
- Annual Report 2013-14 http://www.delhimetrorail.com/OtherDocuments/EnglishAR201314Low.pdf , 22 September 2014, Accessed on 29 August 2017, Delhi Metro Rail Corporation Limited
- Annual Report 2015-16 http://www.delhimetrorail.com/OtherDocuments/DMRCAEnglhYear20156.pdf , 8 September 2015, Accessed on 1 September 2017, Delhi Metro Rail Corporation Limited
- Namma Metro, 10th Annual Report, 2015-16 http://english.bmrc.co.in/FileUploads/382ef4_BondFiles.pdf , 1 September 2016, Accessed on 2 September 2017, Bangalore Metro Rail Corporation Limited
- Namma Metro ridership crosses 3 lakh on day 1 http://economictimes.indiatimes.com/news/politics-and-nation/namma-metro-ridership-crosses-3-lakh-on-day-1/articleshow/59229710.cms , Naveen Menezes, 20 June 2017, Accessed on 2 September 2017, The Economic Times
- Two years of Jaipur Metro: Challenges ahead https://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/city/jaipur/two-years-of-jaipur-metro-challenges-ahead/articleshow/58950711.cms , TNN, 2 June 2017, Accessed on 2 September 2017, The Times of India
- Jaipur Metro, 7th Annual Report, 2015-16 http://transport.rajasthan.gov.in/content/dam/transport/metro/RTI/Section%204(1)%20(b)/17/Annual%20Report%202015-16.pdf , 29 September 2016, Accessed on 3 September 2017, Jaipur Metro Rail Corporation Limited
- Plan Your Journey http://chennaimetrorail.org/ , Accessed on 3 September 2017, Chennai Metro Rail Limited
- With underground stretch, Metro patronage doubles http://www.thehindu.com/news/cities/chennai/with-underground-stretch-metro-patronage-doubles-in-chennai/article19543885.ece , Sunitha Sekhar, 23 August 2017, Accessed on 3 September 2017, The Hindu
- Chennai metro’s 1st underground line opens http://www.thehindubusinessline.com/news/chennai-metros-1st-underground-line-opens/article9697789.ece , Bureau, 14 May 2017, Accessed on 3 September 2017, The Hindu Business Line
- Southern Railway, Suburban Time Table, Chennai Division http://www.sr.indianrailways.gov.in/view_section.jsp?lang=0&id=0,2,1429 , Accessed on 3 September 2017, Ministry of Railways, Government of India
- Poor public transport leaves them on slow lane http://www.thehindu.com/news/cities/chennai/poor-public-transport-leaves-them-on-slow-lane/article19151343.ece , R. Srikanth, 27 June 2017, Accessed on 3 September 2017, The Hindu
- Profile of Southern Railway http://www.sr.indianrailways.gov.in/cris//uploads/files/1493966911931-vital-statistics-2017.pdf , 31 March 2017, Accessed on 7 September 2017, Ministry of Railways, Government of India
- Odd-even plan: Delhi Metro decides on 70 additional trips daily http://www.btvi.in/article/read/news/3852/odd-even-plan--delhi-metro-decides-on-70-additional-trips-daily , PTI, 28 December 2015, Accessed on 7 September 2017, Business Television India
- Time Table Details http://chennaimetrorail.org/wp-content/uploads/2017/06/Revised-Train-Timings-28june-2017.pdf , Accessed on 7 September 2017, Chennai Metro Rail Limited
- Delhi Metro Route Map http://www.delhimetrorail.com/otherdocuments/922/Route_Map_Folder_Eng_CTC.pdf , Accessed on 7 September 2017, Delhi Metro Rail Corporation Limited
- 9th Annual Report, 2015-16 http://chennaimetrorail.org/wp-content/uploads/2017/01/Annual-Report-for-the-year-2015-16.pdf , 22 August 2016, Accessed on 7 September 2017, Chennai Metro Rail Limited
- Metro Railway, Kolkata, Our Railway Map http://www.mtp.indianrailways.gov.in/view_section.jsp?id=0,1,285&lang=0 ,Last Updated on 29 August 2017, Accessed on 9 September 2017, Ministry of Railways, Government of India
- Overall performance of Indian Railways – Monthly – March 2017 http://www.indianrailways.gov.in/railwayboard/uploads/directorate/stat_econ/MTHSTAT/2017/MER_March_2017.pdf , Accessed on 9 September 2017, Ministry of Railways, Government of India
- Combined Suburban Time Table, Eastern Railway, Metro Railway and South Eastern Railway http://er.indianrailways.gov.in/ticker/1443528021651SUB_TT-2015.pdf Accessed on 9 September 2017, Ministry of Railways, Government of India
- Eastern Railway, About Us, Statistics http://er.indianrailways.gov.in/view_section.jsp?lang=0&id=0,1,304 , Last Updated on 28 July 2016, Accessed on 9 September 2017, Ministry of Railways, Government of India
- South Eastern Railway, Salient Features of SER http://www.ser.indianrailways.gov.in/uploads/files/1472818178921-Performance_SER.pdf , Accessed on 9 September 2017, Ministry of Railways, Government of India
- Metro Railway, Kolkata, Time table http://www.mtp.indianrailways.gov.in/view_section.jsp?lang=0&id=0,2,512 , Last Updated on 5 October 2016, Accessed on 9 September 2017, Ministry of Railways, Government of India
- Mumbai Metro, FAQs, Travel & Train http://www.reliancemumbaimetro.com/faqs.html , Accessed on 9 September 2017, Reliance Metro
- Namma Metro, Metro Timings http://english.bmrc.co.in/TravelInfos , Accessed on 10 September 2017
- 1st phase of Hyderabad metro rail project to be operational in November http://economictimes.indiatimes.com/industry/transportation/railways/1st-phase-of-hyderabad-metro-rail-project-to-be-operational-in-november/articleshow/60409414.cms , PTI, 7 September 2017, Accessed on 10 September 2017, The Economic Times
- South Central Railway, EMU Car Shed http://www.scr.indianrailways.gov.in/view_section.jsp?lang=0&id=0,1,291,355,1000,1074 , Last updated on 18 July 2017, Accessed on 10 September 2017, Ministry of Railways, Government of India
- MMTS on course, yet funding issues remain http://www.thehindu.com/news/cities/Hyderabad/mmts-on-course-yet-funding-issues-remain/article18715336.ece , V. Geetanath, 3 June 2017, Accessed on 10 September 2017, The Hindu
Comments