Title - Metro to bring bus bay at South

Kochi: With a Metro station coming up in the grounds of the Ernakulam South railway station, the railway authorities have decided to build a dedicated bus bay here and also create separate lanes for autos and taxis for the convenience of passengers in the long term.

“We’re planning to have a dedicated parking space for buses, which could come in very handy during the Sabarimala season when the KSRTC operates from  here, and also regulate the operation of autorickshaws and taxis to avoid congestion,” said area manager, P.L. Ashok Kumar.

The autorickshaws have been told to enter the station from the northern end, pick up/drop passengers at the prepaid counter and then proceed southwards. 

Until now they were allowed to enter from the northern   side, but took a U-turn to pick up or drop passengers and another  U-turn to exit from the south- end.

Besides meeting the needs of the Metro station coming up at its southern end, the project is expected to improve facilities at the Ernakulam South railway station and upgrade it to world class  standards.  Divisional Railway Manager, Rajesh Agarwal says the work will be carried out in phases with the help of sponsors and assures there will be no demolition of the present structure. “We only plan to renovate it keeping modern Kerala  architecture in mind,” he explained.