Metropolitan Kolkata Urban Transport and Spatial Planning

Project Summary:

The project aims to (i) improve the efficiency and safety of passenger and freight movement across the Hooghly River and (ii) establish a spatial planning framework to enhance accessibility within Kolkata Metropolitan Area. The project supported by KGGTF will conduct a series of technical studies on green growth that can provide input to the design of the West

Bengal Inland Water Transport, Logistics and Spatial Development Project and to the inland water transport (IWT) sector reform it propagates, complementing the analytical work being done under the Project. The KGGTF activities will provide critical green growth analytics and strategy to the Project’s investments, which will integrate urban planning, economic development, and environmental resilience, support data-driven decision-making, and further knowledge exchange between West Bengal and Korea. IWT has enormous potential to sustainably connect the city, and waterfront restoration can play a critical role in flood defense, protecting the city, and managing flooding risks. Kolkata has an opportunity to become a green growth best practice of how to mitigate flooding while providing riverfront accessibility and low-carbon transport.

List of Activities:

1. Integrated Spatial Development Plan (ISDP) 
2. Green Growth Spatial Strategy (GGSS) for the Kolkata Metropolitan Region 
3. Waterfront master plan and investment plan 
4. Design of IWT jetty station area plans 
5. IWT Private Sector Participation Study 
6. Geospatial data platform
7. Capacity enhancement

Outcomes:

Output 1:

• Analytics of IWT existing situation, vision document, IWT growth plan and investment prioritization

Output 2:

• Diagnostic assessment, flood hazard map, risk assessment, growth strategy

Output 3:

• Inventory of waterfront land use and ownership, vision document, conceptual master plan, investment plan 

Output 4:

• Station area plans for new and rehabilitated jetties 

Output 5:

• Study of IWT private sector participation and investment approaches

Output 6:

• Development of a data platform

Output 7:

• Capacity building in IWT, spatial planning and urban mobility 

Outcomes:

1. Improved efficiency:  The proposed grant will improve the efficiency of Kolkata’s urban transport through a comprehensive mix of policy, analytics, and capacity building that will be supported by data-informed decision-making based on real-time inputs and inform the Project’s investments. IWT and its related analytics will provide the city with an opportunity to better manage its annual flooding, deliver a low-carbon transport alternative, shorten connections to the Kolkata Port, and reduce pollution and congestion. The Project’s investments will encourage IWT usage, and the KGGTF grant’s activities will ensure that the station area plans and waterfront master plan highlight accessibility and safeguard against urban flooding, and multi-modal connections are designed as a cohesive network.
2. Greater resilience:  West Bengal is especially vulnerable to extreme weather due to its river network, the presence of a number of lakes, ponds and canals in the Kolkata metropolitan area, and poorly managed and clogged drainage systems. Kolkata and West Bengal have an opportunity to lead India’s development of IWT and become a best practice of how to mitigate flooding while providing riverfront accessibility through sustainable floodplain management. Harnessing the potential of city’s natural assets and developing IWT will provide low-carbon transport alternatives, safeguard the city’s floodplain, expand the existing IWT system, and make traveling by boat safer and more accessible. The grant’s activities, namely the waterfront master plan, GGSS, and the knowledge exchange activities with Korea will directly contribute to this and strengthen the resilience angle to the Project’s investments. 
3. Increased competitiveness:  Livability and a resilient urban environment are key to a city’s competitiveness. By improving the efficiency of passenger and freight transport and increasing the city’s resilience to urban flooding, the proposed activities will directly contribute to the increased competitiveness of the Kolkata metropolitan area by fostering a better urban environment and improving the quality of life and connectivity of its residents. The KGGTF activities will ensure that critical studies are in place for a comprehensive response to today’s congestion, flooding and urban sprawl. The GGSS will leverage wider economic development opportunities around the Project’s transportation improvements. 

Collaboration with K-Partners and Others:

• Ministry of Land, Infrastructure, and Transport (MOLIT)
• Korea Research Institute for Human Settlements (KRIHS)
• National Disaster Management Research Institute within the Ministry of Interior and Safety
• Ministry of Science and ICT
• Seoul Metropolitan Government, Jeju Province
• Busan Port Authority