Mumbai: Good news for you. You can travel in Metro, Local or Bus or Boat with a single ticket. The tender for the same is in final stage. This was the announcement made by the Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis in state Assembly. “ We are setting up the Urban Metropolitan Transportation Authority(UMTA) to bring all the public transport under one roof. All state government buses , all city bus services of all Municipal Corporations, all suburban local services, all water transport services in Mumbai Metropolitan Region (MMR) , will now come under UMTA. The UMTA will be part of Mumbai Metropolitan Regional Development Authority (MMRDA),” CM informed the state assembly while replying the discussion on Mumbai’s issues. “ There will be single ticket and you can use it in all public transport services,” he added.
The public transport infrastructure in Mumbai is dismal. There is no coordination between the dozens of agencies and organisations that build and maintain rail and road networks, worsening the situation for Mumbaikars. This will be a major boost to regularise and to integrate the panning process of transportation in Mumbai and adjoining towns. This also help better coordination between Central and Western Railways, BEST and city bus services of all cities falling under MMR. “ The revenue will be shared on the basis of passengers travelling from their respective areas. This will also enable UMTA to bear the loss and will save the government agencies from bearing the loss directly,” CM added.
Every day, 75 lakh people travel by local trains; 40 lakh take the buses run by the BEST and nearly 50 lakh commute by auto rickshaws and taxis in Mumbai. The Metro too also has a significant user base. Mumbaikars have suffered immensely due to the involvement of multiple governmental agencies and the self-serving nature of political parties, which has held back the city from becoming truly world-class.
