Focus on waterways transportation to resolve road and traffic congestion in Goa: CPIE India

PANAJI: The number of registered vehicles with the various RTOs in Goa is more than 16 lakh and taking into consideration the fact that on any given day there are at least 50,000 to 60,000 vehicles transiting through the state, not to forget vehicles brought in by tourists, Goa’s present road network has already reached its saturation point.

The addition of additional road capacity is a herculean task for the coastal state, given the fact that Goa has rivers like the Mandovi and the Zuari crisscrossing the North-South road link and the bridge network on these rivers cannot be increased beyond a certain limit, opines Vijay Suri, a logistics and transportation expert with the CPIE India (Centre for Promoting Indian Economy).

With no major scope for increasing the North to South road capacity and network in Goa, the only solution is to divert passenger traffic via waterways to reduce congestion.

While River and Navigation Minister Subhash Phal Desai as well as the Goa CM Dr Pramod Sawant has been bullish on improving waterways transportation by adopting the latest technology and doubling the present passenger traffic on the state’s waterways, much remains to be done.

Goa needs to procure at least 10 to 12 solar ferry boats in the next year or so, to meet its needs for short-distance inland waterway passenger transportation, if it wants to decongest its main roads as well as reduce the State’s carbon footprint, opine experts.

Solar-powered or hybrid boats are energy-efficient and environment-friendly eliminating the use of fossil fuels. They are quieter than diesel boats and while diesel boats can discharge oil and grease into the water due to leakage, solar-powered boats are much cleaner, resulting in far less water and noise pollution. They are cost effective and low on maintenance over the long run and involve a lot of saving on expensive diesel, mechanical parts and routine repair.

Besides cost effective and cleaner boats for waterways transport, Goa needs eco-friendly jetties with last mile connectivity to handle the increased volume of passenger and goods traffic.

According to one estimate by the CPIE India, Goa needs at least 16 to 18 modern, eco-friendly jetties in the next one year and will require about 30 to 35 new jetties by 2030, if it wants to meet targets for waterways transportation – both for passenger and goods movement.

Since tourists travelling from one part of the state to the other for sightseeing, normally travel light and do not have a lot of luggage, the government can ensure that only “green” solar ferries are used for tourist transport via the waterways in the State, reducing the State’s carbon footprint and effecting considerable savings to the exchequer.

(Goa Media Monitor is a Panaji-based Think Tank, involved in transportation, environment, pollution, logistics and infrastructure-related issues)