1. Metro Railway How it began
India's 1st and Asia's 5th metro rail was introduced in Kolkata.
Over a length of km and the work on this project was sanctioned on
The construction work started in After crossing so many hurdles Calcutta Metro started its journey on October 24, 1984

2. Why is it needed ? Unprecedented growth of personal vehicles.
Growing traffic congestion.
Air pollution and traffic accidents has become a major concern.
To avoid congestion at peak hours.
Time saving. Reduced fuel consumption.

3. Key Considerations for MRTS
A metro model for a county would have to depend on its logistics, financial resources
Planning, construction, designing and management of metros require :-extensive data, detailed surveys, study of economic structure, profile of settlement topography, travel preference, major traffic corridors.
System needs to be made self-reliant and self-contained to minimize O&M (operations & maintenance) cost.
Technology with low initial cost but with high O & M cost should be avoided.

4. BENEFITs OF METRO RAIL
Requires 1/5th energy per passenger km compared to road-based transport system.
Causes less noise, no air pollution and eco friendly transport system.
Occupies no road space if underground and only about meters width of the road if elevated.
Reduces journey time.
Cost effective mass transport system.
Reducing traffic transport problems.

5. The Advantages And Disadvantages
A cheap mode of transport, the MRTS helps in low energy consumption
It is eco-friendly (runs on electricity, thus minimizing air and sound pollution)
Averts the number of accidents
Is efficient in terms of space occupancy and provides comfort with ultra-modern coaches and modern systems like automatic ticketing, advanced signaling systems, automatic train protection system and integrated security systems.

6. Advantages contd…
Services like ATMs, food outlets, cafés and convenience stores at these stations make the journey more fruitful.
Also such stations lead to nearby economic development.
The international standard for MRTS with a maximum speed of 80kmph and average speed of around 34kmph helps in saving of time.
With proper designing, the peak hour capacity could be rated at 3-4 lakhs passengers per hour."

7. Disadvantages:
The only disadvantage of metros is the slight congestion on roads at the time of construction which has to be taken care of.
The cost factor is another disadvantage, the solution for which is to integrate metros with others systems considering the volume, structure, availability of space and resources for traffic and transportation.