Gadkari's mega plan: Hyperloop, electric bus and ropeway will change India's journey

Union Minister of Road Transport and Highways Nitin Gadkari has introduced a mega plan to overhaul the country's traffic system. It proposes to implement facilities such as electric rapid transport, hyperloop, ropeway, cable bus, and funicular railway at a fast pace.

Gadkari told PTI that India's transport sector is going through a major change. New projects also include innovative steps like mobile-based driving test, flex-fuel engine, and tree bank.

Gadkari said that there is a plan to build ropeways, cable cars, and funicular railways in 360 remote places in the country. Work has started on 60 of these projects. These projects will play an important role in connecting hilly and difficult-to-reach areas. The cost of these projects can range from Rs 200 crore to Rs 5,000 crore.

Gadkari said that 25,000 km of two-lane roads will be converted into four-lane roads, and a target has been set to build 100 km of road every day. At present, the length of national highways in India has reached 1.46 lakh km, which was 91,287 km in 2014.

Planning of Hyperloop, Metrono Pod Taxi, and pillar-based mass rapid transport projects is being done in cities like Delhi and Bengaluru. The trial of a 135-seater electric bus is being started in Nagpur in the country. This bus will run at a speed of 120-125 km per hour and will be charged in 30-40 minutes. After successful trials, they will be run on routes like Delhi-Chandigarh, Delhi-Jaipur, and Mumbai-Pune.

11 companies like Tata, Toyota, Mahindra, and Hyundai have agreed to make vehicles with flex-fuel engines. This will reduce dependence on imported fuel and also reduce pollution.

Gadkari said that 20 to 25 crore trees will be planted along the highways. Along with this, a tree bank plan is also in the works. He said that green mobility will not only reduce the country's fuel bill of Rs 22 lakh crore, but logistics costs will also come down from 14% to 9%.