A group of knowledgeable individuals from Kochi Water Metro travelled to Surat in order to investigate the possibilities of establishing water metro services along the Tapi River (Tapi River). With the implementation of a water metro, Surat will become the first city in Gujarat to have one, and it will be the second city in India to have one, following Kochi in Kerala.
Nishanth K, a specialist in coastal engineering, and Arjun Krishna, an engineer specialising in transportation, were the two members of the team who arrived in response to an invitation extended by the Surat Municipal Corporation (SMC). They carried up a feasibility assessment, which involved studying a 33-kilometer section of the river, beginning at the Singapore causeway and working their way upstream to Dumas.
Nishanth K brought attention to the possibility of establishing a water metro in Surat, but he also mentioned several obstacles, such as the water levels, the flow of the river during the monsoon season, and the absence of tidal conditions in Kochi. The group intends to conduct an analysis of the data, which will include the water levels during floods, the outflow from the Ukai Dam, and the state of the waterbed. A comprehensive survey and bathymetric study will be carried out in order to map the features that are located underwater.
The data that was supplied by SMC will be used by the Kochi team to compile a report that will contain information on the patterns of rainfall, the ability to convey water, and the depth of the riverbed. A preliminary report will serve as a guide for the project’s subsequent endeavours.
For the water metro, there will be boats that are powered by batteries and have a capacity of one hundred people. For the purpose of improving connection, SMC intends to link terminal stations with transit systems such as metro rail, BRTS, and city buses. Next week, the Kochi team will report their preliminary findings to SMC, which will signal a significant step forward in the direction of transforming Surat into a centre for environmentally responsible water transportation.
