India May Soon Introduce Sky Buses On Select Routes.

As union road transport and highways minister Nitin Gadkari sees it as a way to reduce traffic and pollution in the nation’s capital and neighbouring states, India may soon get its first Skybus on select stretches of Delhi and Haryana. Gadkari stated at a Boston Consulting Group (BCG) event that the climate agenda is the government’s top priority because economic growth with pollution is not a good strategy, and he plans to introduce sky buses on select stretches.

What is a Skybus?

A Skybus is a railway system that is similar to Metro in that the cars are suspended below an elevated track. A skybus system, designed by Indian technologist B. Rajaram, is similar to Germany’s Wuppertal Schwebebahn or H-Bahn systems. The Indian government began testing the Skybus metro in 2004, but it was halted after one employee was killed and three others were injured in an accident.

Skybus can travel at speeds of up to 100 km/h and are powered by electricity. If Gadkari’s plan to launch Skybus metro from Dhaula Kuan to Manesar is successful, the journey will take about 24 minutes.

Gadkari also revealed that his dream is to reduce the import of fossil fuels in India to zero and it is the government’s priority to make green hydrogen from water. The minister also emphasised the need to encourage the use of ethanol for transportation purposes as it is economically cheaper, pollution-free and indigenous. “Ethanol is going to increase agriculture growth in the country as we will manufacture ethanol from rice,” he said. Gadkari also noted that banning thermal power plants will not be good for the economy.

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