NCRTC explores non-fare box revenue options for Delhi-Meerut RRTS Corridor

New Delhi, India (Urban Transport News): Getting people to use the India's first RRTS i.e. Delhi-Meerut Regional Rapid Transit System (RRTS) in its initial stage will be a challenge, said Vinay Kumar Singh, Managing Director of National Capital Region Transport Corporation (NCRTC) in a seminar recently.

The primary reason for an expected shortfall in the number of visitors as the priority corridor will initially have only five stations, which is much shorter than the entire 82.5-km long Delhi-Meerut RRTS corridor.

In view of the above, NCRTC is planning to develop 77 acres of its non-operational land near the Duhai RRTS depot for setting up amusement parks, sports and cultural facilities, and retail, dining and entertainment spaces under TOD policy.

NCRTC has invited expression of interest (EOI) from developers, which will not only help in raising revenue for the projects but also contribute to the overall RRTS ridership. "The presence of about 77 acres of contiguous and encumbrance-free land near the Duhai depot with access — both public transit and roads — provides an opportunity to develop quality retail dining entertainment (RDE) spaces, integrated with regional attractions such as theme and amusements parks,” said a NCRTC official, TOI reported.

“This would provide for the demand already existing for such destinations in NCR while at the same time will help in contributing to the ridership of the RRTS network,” he added.

The immediate catchment of the site features institutional areas, industrial and warehousing areas, recreational spaces and residential settlements. The site is also located near Raj Nagar Extension, a prominent residential township of Ghaziabad.

Back in 2022, Uttar Pradesh government has notified the UP-TOD Policy. The policy provides for mixed use development with additional purchasable floor area ratio (FAR) of up to 5 along 1.5km of the RRTS corridor.

“An influence zone of 1.5 km radius around the Duhai Depot RRTS station is presently being delineated and incorporated into the GDA draft 2031 master plan. The entirety of the RRTS land at the Duhai Depot shall fall within this TOD sone,” said an official of the Ghaziabad Development Authority (GDA).