Self-driving pods could soon take commuters between Delhi and Haryana within minutes, PTI reported on Wednesday.
The Transport Ministry said a high-level panel has asked it to call for new bids and to build the corridor following American safety standards.
The Rs 4,000-crore pod taxi, or Personal Rapid Transit, project will run 70 km between Dhaula Kuan in Delhi to Manesar in Haryana. The system has driverless vehicles in the shape of pods, which can hold two to six people each, Mint reported. The pods are programmed to run a predetermined course at 80 km per hour to 130 km per hour.
“The committee recommends issuance of a fresh expression of interest incorporating automated people movers standards and specifications, along with other general safety parameters with Niti Aayog recommendations,” said the five-member committee, headed by transport expert SK Dhramadhikari.
The panel studied the technical and safety standards of the system.
The bids invited in 2016 will be scrapped as standards and procedures to implement the project were not laid down then, Minister of Road Transport and Highways Nitin Gadkari said, according to Mint.
“The safety and security concerns will be taken care of as per the recommendation of the committee,” Gadkari told PTI. “This will be a major step towards easing congestion on the busy Dhaula Kuan-Manesar stretch.
The project has been delayed as government think-tank Niti Aayog first pointed out safety issues. It then told the Ministry of Road Transport and Highways to get the initial bidders to test the project on a 1-km pilot stretch.
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