DELHI (Metro Rail News): Indian Railways will soon invite fresh bids for the redevelopment of Vijayawada railway station after the project received a weak response from contractors in the first round. The Rs 946.60 crore project aims to give Vijayawada station a modern airport style upgrade with bigger passenger facilities, better connectivity and improved crowd management.
Project to come up under the PPP model
Indian Railways is planning to develop the station through the Design, Build, Finance, Operate and Transfer (DBFOT) model, which works under the Public Private Partnership (PPP) system. Out of the total project cost, around Rs 661.11 crore covers mandatory development work under the PPP model. Railway officials said that many developers wanted more time to study the project conditions and understand the PPP guidelines before submitting bids. A consultant linked to the stakeholder meeting said that this is one of the first railway station redevelopment projects in the region under the PPP model, so companies are taking extra time before participating.
RLDA to handle the project
Indian Railways has given project execution responsibility to the Rail Land Development Authority (RLDA). The Ministry of Railways has selected Vijayawada among 15 railway stations across the country for redevelopment under the PPP model. At the same time, Indian Railways has already started or completed redevelopment work at several stations in Andhra Pradesh under the Amrit Bharat Station Scheme, including:
- Visakhapatnam Junction railway station
- Nellore railway station
- Tirupati railway station
Key features
The redevelopment plan includes major upgrades for passengers and station infrastructure.
- New terminal buildings on both the east and west sides
- A wider foot over the bridge connecting all platforms
- Multi-level car parking
- Modern passenger areas and waiting spaces
- Revamp of all 10 platforms
- Facilities designed to handle around 20,000 passengers during peak hours
Indian Railways wants to improve passenger movement and reduce congestion at the busy station.
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