Anticipated Revival of UMTA: The Key to Overcoming Hyderabad’s Infrastructure Challenges and Transforming the City
File photo of the steel bridge between VST and Indira Park under construction, which passes over the Metro Rail stretch in Hyderabad. | Photo Credit: NAGARA GOPAL
The Congress Government in Telangana is unveiling ambitious plans to enhance civic infrastructure and expand metro rail connectivity. These initiatives include new link roads and improved first/last mile connectivity to encourage public transport usage. However, the challenge extends beyond finances to coordination among various departments like water board, power utilities, national highways, and more.
Reviving the Unified Metropolitan Transport Authority (UMTA) is seen as crucial to addressing these complexities. Originally established 15 years ago as part of the National Urban Transport Policy (NUTP), UMTA aimed to streamline civic infrastructure and promote public transportation but has been inactive for five years. Chaired by the Chief Secretary and comprising heads from municipal, transport, finance departments, and other agencies, UMTA has lacked the necessary authority and funding to be effective.
Despite efforts to establish a robust funding mechanism, such as allocating 10% of motor vehicle tax or creating an escrow account for traffic and transportation projects, these proposals have not materialized. Notably, there have been only about a dozen UMTA meetings since its inception, with the last meeting proposing an Urban Transport Development Fund (UTDF) for swift project execution and regular meetings.
An anonymous official highlighted that cities like Bengaluru benefit from a 1% fuel sales corpus fund aiding their metro expansion, unlike Hyderabad where even traffic fines are not shared. The lack of coordinated planning is evident as recent flyover and civic projects have proceeded without UMTA’s oversight, leading to unresolved issues in public transportation infrastructure.
Original Story https://www.thehindu.com/news/cities/Hyderabad/revival-of-umta-awaited-it-is-a-key-to-resolve-roadblocks-to-hyderabad-infra-projects/article68571989.ece
Category : Hyderabad
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