Kolkata: State urban development and municipal affairs minister Agnimitra Paul has outlined a vision to modernise the city’s public transportation system, proposing a unified single-ticket system allowing seamless travel across buses, trains and the metro, drawing inspiration from London’s Transport for London (TfL) model. The idea has been discussed several times in the past but not been implemented.Paul had a preliminary discussion on the idea with state transport minister Arjun Singh at Asansol on Saturday. “I have outlined the plan to Singh. I will further sit with the minister to discuss and carry forward on the plan,” Paul told TOI on Saturday.Paul has said that the idea was to have a unified single-ticket system allowing integrated tracking and seamless travel in buses, trains, metro and launch or vessel travel on the river, similar to how TfL operates in London. The plan emphasises better synchronisation between road, rail and water transport (such as river services) to make switching between different transit modes easier.Paul has further clarified that the goal was not to have a blind imitation of the transport system of London but rather to upgrade Kolkata’s transport infrastructure while keeping the city’s unique cultural soul intact.
