KARACHI CIRCULAR RAILWAY

MSc Transportation Engineering

Railway Engineering

28th November, 2007

 Population (Million)

0
5
10
15
20
25
30
35
40
Tokyo

New York

Seoul

Mexico City

São Paulo

Osaka

Los Angeles

Mumbai

Cairo

Jakarta

Buenos Aires

Kolkata

Moscow

New Delhi
Most Populous Cities (More than Karachi)

Manila

Shanghai
Status in Mega Cities

London

Rio de Janeiro
City With Mass Transit

Karachi
City Without Mass Transit

Source: UN Data 2001

 Population (Million)

-
2
4
6
8
10
12
Karachi
Istanbul
Tehran
Dhaka
Paris
Chicago
Beijing
Bogotá
Washington
Lima
T'aipei
Khartoum
Lagos
SanFrancisco
Bangkok
Hong Kong
Chongqing
Johannesburg
Most Populous Cities (Less Than Karachi)

Chennai
Status in Mega Cities

Philadelphia
Kinshasa
Essen
City With Mass Transit

City Without Mass Transit

Lahore
Source: UN Data 2001
 Mass Transit Systems in Asia

„ Operational in 48 Cities
„ Planned in 14 Cities
„ Karachi Does Not Figure in the Asian Transit Map!
Mass Transit Systems in Asia
Ankara, TURKEY
„ Population: 3.4 M

„ Length: ~15 km
Mass Transit Systems in Asia
Bangkok, THAILAND
„ Population: 7.1 M

„ Length: ~23 km
Mass Transit Systems in Asia
Beijing, CHINA
„ Population: 8.6 M

„ Length: ~54 km
Mass Transit Systems in Asia
Kolkata, INDIA
„ Population: 13.4 M

„ Length: ~17 km
Mass Transit Systems in Asia
Chennai, INDIA
„ Population: 6.6 M

„ Length: ~9 km
Mass Transit Systems in Asia
New Delhi, INDIA
„ Population: 13.2 M

„ Length: ~8 km
Mass Transit Systems in Asia
Hong Kong, CHINA
„ Population: 6.8 M

„ Length: ~78 km
Mass Transit Systems in Asia
Istanbul, TURKEY
„ Population: 10.7 M

„ Length: ~26 km
Mass Transit Systems in Asia
Izmir, TURKEY
„ Population: 2.5 M

„ Length: ~12 km
Mass Transit Systems in Asia
Kuala Lumpur, MALAYSIA
„ Population: 2.3 M

„ Length: ~72 km
Mass Transit Systems in Asia
Manila, PHILIPPINES
„ Population: 12.8 M

„ Length: 58 km
Mass Transit Systems in Asia
Mumbai, INDIA
„ Population: 16.7 M

„ Length: ~50 km
Mass Transit Systems in Asia
Pyongyang, NORTH KOREA
„ Population: 3.6 M

„ Length: ~22 km
Mass Transit Systems in Asia
Seoul, SOUTH KOREA
„ Population: 20.4 M

„ Length: ~160 km
Mass Transit Systems in Asia
Shenghai, CHINA
„ Population: 12.0 M

„ Length: ~70 km
Mass Transit Systems in Asia
SINGAPORE
„ Population: 3.3 M

„ Length: ~156 km
Mass Transit Systems in Asia

Tehran, IRAN
„ Population: 10.7 M

„ Length: ~59 km
Mass Transit Systems in Asia
Tokyo, JAPAN
„ Population: 34.7 M

„ Length: ~328 km
KARACHI AND
IT’S
TRANSPORT
INFRASTUCTURE
 Karachi – Our Largest City
„ Since 1947;
„ Area Increased from 100 sq km to 750 sq km
„ Population increased from 1.0 mil to 10.95 mil
„ Density increased from 10,000 to 14,600
persons per/sq km
„ Slow Pace of Development
„ Inadequate Civic Infrastructure Leading to
Multi-Dimensional Problems
Top 40 Asian Cities (Asiaweek)

Karachi – Our Largest City

 Karachi - Travel Demand
„ Key Statistics from Studies (Year 2002)
„ Trip Generation 12 Million/Day
„ Private Transport 4.8 Million/Day
(Car, motorcycle, taxis, etc.)
„ Public Transport (Buses) 7.2 Million/Day

„ Peak Public Transport (Buses) 0.7 Million/Hour

Source : KMTC
Present Situation
Past Transit Studies
„ 1952: MRVP Masterplan
„ 1974: Karachi Rapid Transit Study
„ 1985: Karachi Transportation Masterplan
„ 1990: Karachi Mass Transit Study
„ 1990: KCR Improvement Study (JARTS)
„ 1994: KMTS Priority Corridor 1
„ 1994: KMTS Priority Corridor 2
„ 1996: BOT Contract on Corridor 1
„ 1997: KMTA/NMTA Implementation Plans
Possible Scenarios
Do-Nothing Scenario
„ Population: 10.95 Million (2001)
18.50 Million (2015)

„ Vehicles: 1.1 Million (2001)

1.98 Million (2015)
 Do-Nothing Scenario
„ Presently, Traffic is +25% over KMTS
forecasts for 2001.
„ At M A Jinnah Road
„ 1,100 buses (18 buses/minute)
„ Double in 10 years; Triple in 15 years!
„ Travel time from 30 minutes to 90 minutes
per trip over next 10-15 years.
Do-Nothing Scenario
„ Operational Buses ~ 8,747
„ Required Buses
„ In 2002 ~12,172
„ In 2010 ~17,000
„ Average Person/Bus Seat
„ Karachi 40
„ Mumbai 12
„ Hong Kong 08
Do-Nothing Scenario
„ Increased Congestion
„ Increased Noise/Air Pollution
„ Increased Cost of Healthcare
„ Increased Social Disorder
„ Many Other Factors Leading to . . .
 Do-Something Scenario
„ Increase Capacity of Existing Roads
„ Widening of Roads
„ Parking Controls on Curb-Parking
„ Develop Parking Lots
„ Improvement in Existing Mass Transit Modes
„ Expand Bus/Minibus Fleet
„ High Capacity Buses
„ Revitalize KCR and Integrate with Overall Urban
Transport System.
GOALS
AND
OBJECTIVES
 Goals & Objectives
„ A Viable Improvement in Transport System
„ Revitalize KCR.
„ Integrate it with Bus System.
„ Aim to Reduced Pollution and Congestion.
„ Provide Comfortable and Affordable Service to Commuter.
„ Optimize Cost-Effective and Safe Operation.
„ Maximize Indigenous Resource Utilization (Locomotives,
Rolling Stocks etc.)
„ Expandable Urban Rail System.
„ Attractive for Public-Private Partnership.
User Requirements
„ Integrated Transport System
„ Affordable and Easy Access
„ Minimum Commuting Time
„ Improved Quality of Service
„ Convenient
„ Efficient
„ Safe
 Why Urban Rail System?
One Train of 900 Passengers Replaces:
600
450

70

15
9
Objective: Increase Road Capacity by Ensuring
a Shift in Preferred Mode of Commuting
Why Urban Rail System?

„ More Efficient Than Roads

„ Reduced Cost of Road Construction/Parking Facilities
„ Reduced Accidents
„ Reduced Congestion
„ Reduced Pollution (Air and Noise)
„ Investment $1, Return $4 (indirect benefits)
„ Increased Value of Property
„ Utilization of Existing Corridors and Resources
„ Many More Indirect Benefits (Intangible)
 Urban Transit Statistics
Peak Passenger Flow

Lagos
Jakarta Sub-Urban Rail
Buenos Aires
Mumbai (Central) Karachi: ~23,400/Hour (2001)
Mumbai (West)
Hong Kong M A Jinnah Road (Peak Direction)
Tunis Light Rail Transit
Manila
Kolkata
Porto Algeres
Pusan
Singapore
Santiago
Rio de Jenero
Cairo
Sao Paulo
Mexico City
Hong Kong
Metro
0 10 20 30 40 50 60 70 80 90
Peak Passenger Flow ('000/Hour/Direction)
AN OVERVIEW
OF THE
KARACHI
CIRCULAR
RAILWAY SYSTEM
 Peak Performance
104 Trains/day, BUT
only 18,000 tickets sold/day

KCR – The Rise-and-Fall

„ 1952 KCR conceived
„ 1964 KCR completed (30 km semi-circle)
„ 1964-74 Excellent Performance
„ 1975-85 Gradual Deterioration
* Too many level crossings;
* Increased travel times;
* Reduced ridership;
* Financial Discipline
„ 1986 Beginning of the End
„ 1996 Symbolic service only
„ 2000 End of service
„ 2002 Assets in shambles
KCR Statistics
Unit KCR PR –
Mainline
Broad Gauge km 30 28
Track
Stations Nos. 14 10
Level Crossing Nos. 26 7
Trains Nos. 0 2
 KCR – Causes of Failure
„ With Accelerated City Expansion (1972 onwards)
„ More Roads, More Level Crossings
„ Increased Travel Time
„ Reduced Ridership
„ Increased Operational Cost With Falling Revenues
„ Reduced Train Frequency
„ Deteriorated Quality of Service
 KCR – Causes of Failure
„ KCR is ONE of SEVERAL PR Projects.
„ Shortfall of Funding for Maintaining KCR.
„ No-Match with Growing Demands.
„ Lack of Coordination between Owner/
Operator, and Planning Agencies.
„ Obsolete Revenue Controls
„ No Commercialization – Though Great
Potential Exists Even Today!