India's first full-fledged BRT system launched in Ahmedabad

Ahmedabad Bus Rapid Transport System (BRTS), touted as the country's first such full fledged project, was launched on Wednesday. With the launch, the city now gets around 25 BRTS buses plying on a 12.5 km stretch from RTO to Chandranagar of the total 55 km of phase one. At a project cost of Rs 80 crore, the 12.5 km long first section of phase one was launched by Narendra Modi, chief minister of Gujarat from Chandranagar.

"This is the first such full fledged BRTS project in the country because similar projects in Delhi and Pune do not carry systems like control room, IT infrastructure, dedicated buses, etc. The Delhi BRT, rather, is primarily a road infrastructure project or high-capacity bus service in which all types of buses run in a lane designed for the BRTS," said Dilip Mahajan, deputy municipal commissioner, Ahmedabad Municipal Corporation (AMC).

Officially named as 'Janmarg' by Gujarat chief minister Narendra Modi, Ahmedabad BRTS is being rolled out under the the Jawaharlal Nehru National Urban Renewal Mission (JNNURM) scheme of the Central government. The project's phase one will be completed by March 2010, Mahajan added.

While phase one will cover the stretch from Naroda to Civil Hospital, phase two is expected to cover areas like Bopal, Aslali, Chandkheda, Odhav and Kalupur. According to Mahajan, phase two will also see an elevated BRTS route from New Cloth Market to Prem Darwaja near Kalupur.

The total cost of the project is estimated to be around Rs 1,000 crore. For parking, the first few lines near the bus station would be alloted for autorickshaws after which there will be space alloted for the two-wheelers and cars. Points of entry for passengers are the vibrant bus stands that dot the BRTS corridor at 500-metre intervals.