Integrated bus terminal at Karikkamuri in Kochi runs into rough weather

The construction of a ₹12-crore integrated bus terminal for KSRTC and private buses on 1.90 acres of KSRTC-owned land at Karikkamuri in the heart of Kochi city has run into rough weather. This is reportedly due to the agency’s reservations about a barter arrangement under which it was to be allotted land of equal value within the Vyttila Mobility Hub (VMH) premises.

Transport Minister Ganesh Kumar told The Hindu that the KSRTC was not immediately keen on constructing a terminal for its buses within the VMH premises. “This is because substantial investment would be needed to fill the largely slushy site to prevent waterlogging. Moreover, prime land owned by the KSRTC would have to be handed over to the Vyttila Mobility Hub Society [VMHS] in return for land that is of far less value or usability. All this is apart from the uncertainty over securing adequate funds to build the integrated bus terminal,” he said.

He also added that he had recently held discussions with the Kochi Metro Rail Limited (KMRL) authorities on whether the metro agency could adopt appropriate technologies and erect a bus terminal complex using steel frames on land near the existing bus stand, where a garage was demolished after it developed cracks. The advantage of a steel structure, he said, is that it can be dismantled and relocated or reused. Such a structure could be built for ₹5 crore, following which the bus terminal—excluding the KSRTC office—could be relocated there.

The executive committee meeting of the VMHS had, in March, decided to hand over land at the mobility hub to KSRTC in return for the 1.90-acre plot near KSRTC’s Ernakulam bus depot. It was also decided at the time that both agencies would retain ownership of their respective plots but would receive permissive sanction to operate on each other’s premises.

As per the plan, a total of 16 KSRTC and private buses could be berthed at a time in the integrated bus terminal that was envisaged at Karikkamuri, for which Cochin Smart Mission Limited (CSML) was to provide ₹12 crore in funding.

Back in March, then Chief Secretary Sarada Muraleedharan had directed the officials concerned to prepare the proposal for the ₹10-crore second phase of the integrated bus terminal to be submitted to the Centre in June. “For now, KSRTC’s long-distance buses will have to make do with a limited number of bays at the VMH premises, since the integrated bus terminal project has not taken off,” official sources said.

Asserting that the State government had been neglecting the renovation of the existing KSRTC bus stand premises despite its poor condition, Hibi Eden, MP, said he had allotted ₹2 crore during his tenure as the Ernakulam MLA to build a temporary bus stand, meant to facilitate relocation of the existing infrastructure and construction of a new one. “A structure built by the KSRTC’s engineering wing using this fund had to be pulled down after it developed major cracks even before its inauguration. Subsequently, action was taken against a senior official of the agency,” he added.

“I am dismayed that the ₹12 crore allotted by CSML for the integrated bus terminal next to the KSRTC stand is yet to be utilised. This is due, among other reasons, to the complexities involved in the land swap between the KSRTC and VMHS. The State government could instead have directly allotted ₹12 crore to the KSRTC to build a new terminal. All this reflects the neglect being meted out to Kochi,” Mr. Eden added.