[artkolkovk]

A common ticketing system to facilitate seamless commuting in all forms of public transport in the city may soon become a reality.

The state government on Thursday set the ball rolling by deciding to constitute a highlevel executivecommittee headed by chief secretary Debendranath Sarangi and comprising representatives of various government agencies, including the Chennai Corporation, Metropolitan Transport Corporation, Chennai Metro Rail, traffic police and Mono Rail officials, to coordinate the system.

The much-awaited decision wastaken atthefirst meeting of the Chennai Unified Metropolitan TransportAuthority (CUMTA)chairedby transport minister Senthil Balaji at the Secretariat.The panelwill meet at regular intervals to decide the execution of various transportation schemes to encourage public transport modes before apprising theCUMTA.

A notification to operationalise CUMTA, which will function as a separate entity with dedicated funding, will soon be issued by the transport department. “The meeting unanimously agreed that CUMTA willusethecomprehensivetraffic and transportation study done by a private agency, Wilbur Smith,in 2010to addressthe planning and development of all types of public transport. Publictransport modesenjoyed a 54% share of the total transportation needsof the peoplein thecity in 1970;thisfellto27%in 2008 and is sought to be improved to 70% as per the second master plan,” said an official.

With the government keen on introducing Mono Rail, and the works on metro rail, outer ring road and other traffic projects gaining momentum, CUMTA’s role could be crucial, officials said. It will help integrate all public modes of transport through routing, scheduling and operating feeder services, to facilitate seamless commuting.

“CUMTA is a big step forward. Officials and citizens have recognized a needfor a single, effective organization for better coordination. This will put an end to agencies looking at their projects in isolation,” said Raj Cherubal of City Connect, an NGO.

-times of india