GUWAHATI: The Chief Secretary of Assam held an initial consultation with the India Resident Mission of the Asian Development Bank (ADB) to explore the feasibility of a Rapid Rail Transit System (RRTS) for Guwahati, marking an early step towards developing a long-term integrated mobility strategy for the city and its metropolitan region.
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During the discussion, the Chief Secretary emphasised that the proposed RRTS should be planned with Guwahati’s transformation over the next two to three decades in mind, rather than being designed around the city’s present urban form alone.
The planning framework is expected to align the rapid transit network with emerging infrastructure developments, including the Ring Road, regional connectivity corridors, new bridges, satellite townships, expanding residential areas and the proposed Aerocity. The objective is to ensure seamless connectivity between the existing urban core and emerging growth centres, while diverting through traffic away from the city and strengthening multimodal connectivity.
Officials also highlighted challenges arising from Guwahati’s expanding urban footprint, including flooding, waterlogging and rising transport demand. They underlined the need for a sustainable and efficient mass transit system developed in coordination with the broader road and infrastructure network.
The State Government indicated that it intends to take forward the proposed RRTS in a phased manner, beginning with priority corridors and progressively integrating them into a wider metropolitan network. A detailed technical assessment will determine the system’s size, capacity, design and configuration based on Guwahati’s long-term mobility requirements.
ADB is expected to bring its experience from metro and RRTS projects across India, along with its emphasis on phased growth, demand-responsive planning, innovation and lifecycle costs, to the planning process. The bank has indicated its readiness to support initial studies that could establish the basis for further partnership.
The consultation comes against the backdrop of the Assam Budget, in which the government announced a feasibility study to explore metro rail along the Guwahati Ring Road.
The consultation marks an initial step towards developing a future-oriented rapid transit plan for Guwahati, taking into account the city’s expanding urban areas, emerging growth centres and regional connectivity needs.