Smart gates at ferry ghats

After an increase in revenue by Rs 15,000 to Rs 20,000 daily due to installation of smart gates at three ferry ghats of the city, the West Bengal State Transport Department has decided to install smart gates at all the 26 ferry ghats of the city. The steady increase in revenue per day suggests that an amount of RS 60 lakhs can be generated a year if these smart gates are put to work. Installing these smart gates at the ghats will also help to integrate the ferry system with the city’s bus transport system. Passengers will be able to use the same smart transport card to travel by bus or to avail the ferry service. This will make the payment process easier and passengers won’t need to form queues to get their tickets. The State Transport Department had installed these smart gates as a part of an experiment at Fairlie Place, Millennium Park jetty and Howrah station ghats and it proved to be quite meaningful with a 20% jump in revenue. A senior transport department officer said, “We have now decided to install turnstile gates at all 26 ghats. Apart from plugging revenue leakage, the smart gate will facilitate seamless movement of commuters. The commuters don’t need to stand in queue. After disembarking from bus, a commuter can straightaway get onto a ferry by using the same smart card. This will save a lot of time”. The State Government is currently working to revamp the waterways with the help of funds from the World Bank and this is one of the projects that it is undertaking to make water transportation better.