The fifth edition of Kochi Public Transport Day (KPTD) was held on June 1, 2018. The event began with the District Collector of Ernakulam K Mohammed Y Safirulla (IAS) and the Regional Transport Officer Reji P Varghese taking public transport to generate awareness among the people.
They arrived at the Maharajas College Ground bus stop by foot from the camp office, from where they boarded a bus to VytillaMobility Hub. By opting for public transport the collector wanted to experience the challenges faced by daily commuters. He also inspected the latest traffic arrangements made at the Vytilla junction.
The collector launched the project of pasting stickers to generate awareness about public transport. The sticker read, “Now onwards I will travel by train, bus, boat and Metro; let’s choose public transport and make way for a new travelling culture”. The sticker will soon be seen on all buses in the city.
The collector also gave away the ‘SreshtaSanchaariPuruskaaram’ to Kurian George, Prabha S and ShefyNiyas. It is an award from Kochi Metro Rail Limited (KMRL) for the most frequent usage of metro services. This was followed by a ferry ride during which the collector and the RTO along with representatives of Centre for Public Policy Research (CPPR), KMRL and other civil society organizations interacted with passengers to collect grievances and suggestions.
During the interaction, various suggestions were put forward including improving boat services from VytillaMobility Hub to Kakkanad, reinstating feeder services from Kakkanad jetty to Infopark, and signages to inform the public about traffic rearrangements at the Vytilla junction.
“Decisions will be taken to improve the feeder services at boat jetties to improve the ridership on ferry services; the district administration will look into the connectivity problems in Kakkanad, especially for those travelling to Infopark,” said the collector. Dr D Dhanuraj, chairperson, CPPR said, “The day highlights the importance of ferry services as they are a cheap, less polluting and congestion free mode of transport. It is pointed out that dredging the 1.8 km stretch from Kakkanad jetty would allow ferries to proceedtill Infopark road. Currently, one ferry operates on this route. Increasing service frequency through privatisation would be successful as proven by the private bus service,” he said.
They arrived at the Maharajas College Ground bus stop by foot from the camp office, from where they boarded a bus to VytillaMobility Hub. By opting for public transport the collector wanted to experience the challenges faced by daily commuters. He also inspected the latest traffic arrangements made at the Vytilla junction.
The collector launched the project of pasting stickers to generate awareness about public transport. The sticker read, “Now onwards I will travel by train, bus, boat and Metro; let’s choose public transport and make way for a new travelling culture”. The sticker will soon be seen on all buses in the city.
The collector also gave away the ‘SreshtaSanchaariPuruskaaram’ to Kurian George, Prabha S and ShefyNiyas. It is an award from Kochi Metro Rail Limited (KMRL) for the most frequent usage of metro services. This was followed by a ferry ride during which the collector and the RTO along with representatives of Centre for Public Policy Research (CPPR), KMRL and other civil society organizations interacted with passengers to collect grievances and suggestions.
During the interaction, various suggestions were put forward including improving boat services from VytillaMobility Hub to Kakkanad, reinstating feeder services from Kakkanad jetty to Infopark, and signages to inform the public about traffic rearrangements at the Vytilla junction.
“Decisions will be taken to improve the feeder services at boat jetties to improve the ridership on ferry services; the district administration will look into the connectivity problems in Kakkanad, especially for those travelling to Infopark,” said the collector. Dr D Dhanuraj, chairperson, CPPR said, “The day highlights the importance of ferry services as they are a cheap, less polluting and congestion free mode of transport. It is pointed out that dredging the 1.8 km stretch from Kakkanad jetty would allow ferries to proceedtill Infopark road. Currently, one ferry operates on this route. Increasing service frequency through privatisation would be successful as proven by the private bus service,” he said.
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