Sunday, November 1, 2015

Coimbatore - Connectivity

Coimbatore - Connectivity
Coimbatore has a well-developed transport infrastructure. The city and its suburbs are traversed using its road networks. Coimbatore is well connected by RoadRail and Air with most cities and towns in India except through waterways.
The city has fairly better transport infrastructure, though road infrastructures are not well maintained and developed according to the growing needs of transport, making traffic congestion a major problem in the city. A comprehensive transport development plan is made part of Coimbatore Master Plan as part to ease many of traffic problems.
By Road
The city and metropolitan area are served by major arterial roads that run either in an east-west or north-south direction. Avinashi road is one of the city's most important arterial roads. It traverses most of central and east Coimbatore (National Highway 47) connecting the metropolis of BangaloreChennai. The road runs in a West-east direction.
Other arterials include Trichy Road (Central-Southeast), Mettupalayam Road (North-South), Sathy Road (South-North East), Palakkad Road (East-West), Pollachi Road (North-South) and Thadagam Road (east-west).
Maruthamalai Road starts at the intersection of Lawley Road Junction and connects Vadavalli and extends up to Maruthamalai foothills. Other roads include 100 feet road, Bharathiyar Road, Dr.Nanjappa Road, Balasundarum Road, Cross cut Road in Gandhipuram Area, Diwhan Bahadhur Road(DB Road), TV Swamy Road, Brooke Bond Road in RS Puram Areas, Race Course Road etc. In January 2012, the Coimbatore Corporation announced that they would be laying around 10 roads by mixing plastic.
There are six major arterial roads in the city: Avinashi Road, Trichy Road, Sathyamangalam Road, Mettupalayam Road, Palakkad Road and Pollachi Road.
Apart from state and National Highways, the city corporation maintains a 635.32 kilometers (394.77 miles) long road network. Coimbatore has several major bus stations. The town buses (intra-city) operate from the town bus stand in Gandhipuram to other bus stations across the city. Inter-city and intra-city buses that connect Coimbatore operate from different bus stands:
Bus station
Services
Gandhipuram Central
Gandhipuram Town
Town services
Singanallur
MaduraiTirunelveliTrichyThanjavur,       Kumbakonam etc.
Ukkadam
Coimbatore North (Mettupalayam Road)
SETC, Gandhipuram
Omni Bus Stand, Gandhipuram
Private mofussil buses.
Town buses started operating in 1921 and serve most parts of the city, as well as other towns and villages in the district. Buses also connect the district with all major towns in TamilnaduKerala, KarnatakaPuducherry and Andhra Pradesh. The number of inter-city routes operated by Coimbatore division is 119 with a fleet of more than 500 buses. It also operates town buses on 257 intra-city routes. The city is also served by auto rickshaws and radio taxi services.
National Highways
Six major National Highways radiate outward from Coimbatore:
NH47: (Avinashi road) towards Salem leading to Bangalore and Chennai.
NH47: (Palakkad road) towards Trichur, Kochi and Trivandrum
NH 67: (Trichy Road) towards Karur, Trichy, Thanjavur & Nagapattinam.
NH 67: (Mettupalayam Road) towards Ooty and Gudalur leading to Karnataka and Kerala.
NH 209: (Sathy Road) towards Sathyamangalam, Chamarajanagar, Bangalore.
NH 209: (Pollachi Road) towards Palani, Dindigul.
Ring Roads:
There is a major bypass Built by L&T from Neelambur to Madukkarai on NH 47 which intersects Trichy road at Chintamani Pudur near Irugur and Eachanari in Pollachi Road.
The Coimbatore Corporation is undertaking the construction of six Rail-Over-Bridges in the city.
The National Highways Authority of India has also invited feasibility studies to upgrade the National Highway connecting Pollachi and Bannari passing through the city.
Public Transport:
Most of Coimbatore's intra-city transport requirements are met by an extensive public transport. The bus service is run by the government - owned TNSTC Coimbatore covers the city and its suburbs.
A large number of intra-city private buses operate within the city. Bus services are generally considered efficient, but buses on some routes can get very crowded at times. The bus service plies about 1257 buses on 322 routes. The city is also served by auto rickshaws. The growth of call taxis is also on the rise.
In addition to the bus service, private metered call taxis and fixed-rate tourist taxis are available at all entry points to the city like airport, bus terminus and railway stations. Vans which are run like bus services and popularly called "Maxi Cabs" also ply on many routes in the city.
The outlying suburban areas of the city are also served by private mini bus company services as well as government bus transport corporations of neighbouring districts.
The city has a very high vehicle-to-population ratio. Despite a sharp increase in the number of four-wheelers in the city, Cycles and motor scooters are still very prevalent, due to their affordability, fuel efficiency, maneuverability, and ease of parking.
List of Mofussil &Town Bus Stands:
·        Gandhipuram Town Bus stand
·        Gandhipuram Mofussil Bus stand
·        Gandhipuram Thiruvalluvar Bus stand (For SETC(TNSTC) and KSRTC Buses)
·        Gandhipuram Omni Bus stand (Near G.P. Signal)
·        Singanallur Mofussil and Town Bus stand
·        Mettupalayam Road Bus stand (Near Saibaba Temple)
·        Ukkadam Mofussil and Town Bus stand
·        vellalore Integrated Bus stand (Upcoming)
List of TNSTC Coimbatore depots in Coimbatore City:
·        Head-Office Branch (City & Moffusil)
·        Uppilipalayam (Mofussil only)
·        Sungam-1(City & Mofussil)
·        Sungam-2(City only)
·        Ukkadam-1(City & Mofussil)
·        Ukkadam-2(City & Mofussil)
·        Ondipudhur-1(City only)
·        Ondipudhur-2(Mofussil only)
·        Marudamalai (City only)
·        Ondipudhur-3(Under Construction)
Also Annur, Pollachi-3, Mettupalayam-1, Karumathampatti & Palladam depots operate City Services for Coimbatore
By Air
The city is served by the Coimbatore International Airport at Peelamedu 15 km (9.3 mi) from the city. The Coimbatore International Airport caters to domestic flights to major Indian cities like AhmedabadBangaloreChennaiDelhiHyderabadKolkataMumbaiVijayawada etc., and international flights to Sharjah and Singapore.
According to statistics available with the AAI, 12, 95,977 passengers were flown from and to Coimbatore in 2013-14, including 11, 76,428 domestic and 1, 19,549 international passengers. Its runway is 9,760 feet (2,970 m) in length and is capable of handling wide-bodied and fat-bellied aircraft used for International flights. 
Sulur Air Force Station, located at Kangayampalayam near the periphery of the city, is an air base of the Indian Air ForceAir Carnival, a proposed airline promoted by the CMC group is expected to commence operations in April 2015 with the Coimbatore International Airport as the hub.
Coimbatore Airport (IATA: CJB, ICAO: VOCB) is a major airport mostly serving Coimbatore and its suburbs in the state of Tamil NaduIndia. The Coimbatore International Airport is the second busiest airport in Tamil Nadu after Chennai International Airport, in terms of passenger traffic, cargo traffic as well as aircraft movement.
The Coimbatore International Airport serves as the city's airport for both domestic and international flights. The airport consists of separate International terminal and the Domestic terminal, and handles domestic as well as international flights.
The city is connected to major hubs in South AsiaSouth East Asia and Middle East through over eight international carriers. The Airport lies around 18 km from the city centre and is accessible by road and rail transport services.
This airport is undergoing modernisation and expansion of the runway, including the alteration of an additional terminal. Furthermore, a new Greenfield airport will be constructed in Neelambur and nearby areas to serve the city's better air connectivity, after the expansion of the runway which will be second longest runway in South India about 12,500 ft. The present terminal buildings in Peelamedu will be used for cargo purpose.
Other airports in the metropolitan area include the Indian Air Force base at SulurSulur Air Force Station was established in 1940 by the British Royal Navy.
By Train
Coimbatore Junction, also known as Kovai Junction, is the primary railway station serving the city of Coimbatore. It has six platforms. It is a Major Railway junction in South India and the second busiest and revenue yielding railway station in Tamil Nadu. Many trains from Kerala to other parts of the country pass through Coimbatore Junction apart from 18 pairs of terminating express trains. It is one of the top booking stations in India according to Indian Railway.
The other junctions are located at Coimbatore North Junction (2.6 km away from CBE on the northern side), Podanur Junction (5.8 km away from CBE on the southern side) and Irugur (16 km from CBE on eastern side).
Train service in Coimbatore started in 1863, upon construction of the Podanur – Madras line connecting Kerala and the west coast with the rest of India. Broad gauge trains connect Coimbatore to all parts of India and Tamil Nadu. 
Meter gauge line existed between Podanur and Dindigul got closed on May 2009 and is under gauge conversion. The Coimbatore Junction is well connected to all the major Indian cities. The Coimbatore Junction comes under the Jurisdiction of the Salem Division and contributes 43.5% of its divisional income. This is the second largest income generating station in the Southern Railway zone of Indian Railways after Chennai Central
Coimbatore North Junction is another important railway junction in the city apart from Coimbatore Junction and Podanur Junction. The other stations include Peelamedu, SinganallurIrugur, PeriyanaickenpalayamMadukkarai, Somanur and Sulur Road.
There is also a bypass line between Irugur and Podanur which is used by some Kerala-bound trains which do not enter Coimbatore city.
Monorail:
Three monorail routes have been proposed. Two are circular routes in the northern and southern parts of the city and a dual linear line connecting the Eastern and Western parts. The Northern Route starts from Gandhipuram via Ganapathy, Sivananda colony, Saibaba colony, RS Puram, Town hall, City Railway Station and ends in Gandhipuram.
The second circular Route will start from Podanur via Trichy Road, Sungam, Redfields, Race Course, City Railway Station, Ukkadam & ends at Podanur.

A linear line was also proposed from ChinniampalayamCoimbatore International Airport, CODISSIA, PSG TechLakshmi Mills, GandhipuramCoimbatore North Junction, Cowley Brown Road and TNAU. Recently Vadavalli and Thondamuthur are the two new areas that have been included in the linear line as part of the phase extension.