Kochi Water Metro is an integrated ferry transport project in Greater Kochi region proposed by Kochi Metro Rail Limited. It is the first of its kind transport system in India and South Asia, that will connect

Kochi Kochi (), also known as Cochin ( ) ( the official name until 1996) is a major port city on the Malabar Coast of India bordering the Laccadive Sea, which is a part of the Arabian Sea. It is part of the district of Ernakulam in the state of K ...

’s 10 island communities with the

mainland Mainland is defined as "relating to or forming the main part of a country or continent, not including the islands around it egardless of status under territorial jurisdiction by an entity" The term is often politically, economically and/or dem ...

through a fleet of 78 battery-operated electric hybrid boats plying along 38 terminals and 16 routes spanning 76 kilometers. It also serves as a feeder service to suburbs along the rivers where transport accesibility is limited. The project obtained the final environment clearance in October 2019 and its first route between

Vytilla Vyttila, , is an intersection as well as the name of a region in the city of Kochi, in the state of Kerala, India. It is the busiest as well as one of the largest intersections in Kerala. This node intersects the main north–south artery of ...

and InfoPark was inaugurated in February 2021. As of December 2022, it is expected to be in operation by the early 2023. The project is expected to become fully operational by 2035 with a daily readership of 1.5 lakh passengers.

Overview

Two variants of modernised air-conditioned and Wi-Fi enabled catamaran passenger boats were proposed for the project. The electric propulsion boats has a passenger capacity of 50 and 100 operate at an optimal speed of about 15 kilometers per hour, with the potential to increase up to 22 kilometers per hour. The boats are equipped with latest safety and communication devices. Small battery operated boats ply on the narrow lanes. The headways vary between 10 minutes to 20 minutes across various routes. The jetties are proposed to have floating pontoons with automatic docking system technology. The floating pontoons will be covered with retractable sheds to provide comfort during rainy season. As part of the infrastructure, Intelligent Navigation System and Operation Control Centre (OCC) are also proposed and will be integrated with the city’s intelligent transportation system. The Automatic Fare Collection system being implemented by the Kochi Metro will be extended to water transport system which facilitates travelling the metro train and the boat using the same ticket. Apart from ferry service, the project also contemplate development of the new and existing access roads to jetties and islands. Two boatyards are proposed, at Thevara and Pizhala. The project also seeks to improve livelihoods in the areas along the backwaters and the islands in

. Tourism is also proposed to be promoted as part of the project. Cochin Shipyard delivered the first of 23 electric ferries in January 2022. The phase 1 consists of 3 lines out of which the

- InfoPark was inaugurated on 15 February 2021. Phase 1 is expected to be fully operational in 2024 and on becoming so, it is expected to serve 34,000 passengers a day. The entire water metro system is expected to become fully operational by 2035 with a daily ridership of 1.5 lakh passengers.

Routes and jetties

Kochi is mostly surrounded by backwaters and bordered by the

Arabian Sea The Arabian Sea ( ar, اَلْبَحرْ ٱلْعَرَبِيُّ, Al-Bahr al-ˁArabī) is a region of the northern Indian Ocean bounded on the north by Pakistan, Iran and the Gulf of Oman, on the west by the Gulf of Aden, Guardafui Channel ...

. It is interconnected by hundreds of waterways, which offers a way to make the public transport system much more accessible and environment friendly. Water Metro is expected to solve the travel issues of the islanders of Willington, Kumbalam

Vypeen Vypin (Malayalam: വൈപ്പിന്‍, Cochin Portuguese: Isla Santa) is one of the group of islands that form part of the city of Kochi (Cochin), in the Indian state of Kerala. Vypin forms a barrier island which lies between the Ar ...

, Edakochi, Nettoor,

Vyttila Vyttila, , is an Intersection (road), intersection as well as the name of a :Regions of Kochi, region in the Kochi, city of Kochi, in the Kerala, state of Kerala, India. It is the busiest as well as one of the largest intersections in Kerala. ...

Eloor Eloor is a suburb of Kochi and a municipality in Paravur Taluk, Ernakulam District in the Indian state of Kerala, India. It is an industrial area situated around north of the city centre. It is an island of 14.21 km2 formed between two dis ...

Kakkanad Kakkanad is a major industrial and residential region in the city of Kochi in Kerala, India. It is situated in the eastern part of the city and houses the Cochin Special Economic Zone, Infopark, Smart City and KINFRA Export Promotion Industri ...

, and

Mulavukad Mulavukad, also known locally as Bolgatty Island, is one of the islands that forms part of the city of Kochi in Kerala, India. It is situated in the Mulavukad Grama Panchayat. Vypin island and Vallarpadam island lie on its west side and Va ...

Funding

The total cost of the Water Metro project is . The

KfW The KfW, which together with its subsidiaries DEG, KfW IPEX-Bank and FuB forms the KfW Bankengruppe ("banking group"), is a German state-owned investment and development bank, based in Frankfurt. As of 2014, it is the world's largest national d ...

Development Bank will be providing EUR 85 million as long term soft loan and the

Government of Kerala Government of Kerala is the Subnational administrative division, subnational government of the Indian state of Kerala. The government is led by a chief minister, who selects all the other ministers. The chief minister and their most senior mini ...

will be contributing .

International attention

In November 2022, the International Maritime Organisation officials visited Kochi as a part of their Green Voyage 2050 project and praised Kochi Water Metro project for its unique initiatives. "The purpose of our visit is to learn about the impressive achievement of Kerala in terms of the water metro, a pioneering initiative in sustainable urban water transport and show others across the world that it is possible to have commercial viability, environmental sustainability and societal impact through such services. We hope that the water metro service will be extended to other parts of the state as well”; said IMO department of partnership and projects chief Jose Mathieckal.

References

{{Kerala transit Ferry transport in India Transport in Kochi