Changing tracks: it's quick

Point of view I

By Dr. Frank Wingler

Surath Wickramasinghe proposed the construction of an elevated expressway over the existing railway line (The Sunday Times, March 5) as an alternative to an expansion and improvement of the existing Colombo-Negombo Road with overhead flyovers and bypasses.

Strongly criticized is the location selected by the RDA, BOI and BII, for which around 300 permanent and 300 temporary houses have to be demolished. The environmental destruction of the RDA proposal for a new highway along the lagoon has aroused public concern in the past.

The fast developing satellite towns of Gampaha, Negombo, Ekala and other centres, the expansion of the Free Trade Zone industries and the increase in the air traffic from the Bandaranaike Airport are demanding a modern regional transport system north and north-east of Colombo.

What suggests itself is to bring more traffic and transport in this fast developing region from the roads onto the rails. The nearest thing is to use the existing railway terraces to Negombo, Katunayake and Veyangoda/Mirigama.

There are many dreams, talk and promises about plans for a modern urban railway system. 

If there are clear decisions made, Sri Lanka can reach a position, to build the required new tracks for a suburban railway without foreign consultation and contractors. I have always suggested the adoption of the modern railtrack standards and methods used nowadays in South India for long distance and urban lines. 

I have said that to provide an effective and quick service to the general public and help the rapidly growing economy it is not a question, whether trains should be hauled by electric or diesel traction. It is a question of the railtrack and quality of the rolling stocks.

If the Sri Lanka Railways is successful in overcoming the existing railtrack and rolling stock situation and if new properly laid and drainaged embankments for tracks on enough ballast can be constructed for a modern suburban dual line railway system, much more traffic and transport can be taken over from the road to the railway. This will alleviate road congestion north and north-east of Colombo.

A modern suburban rail system on or alongside the existing railway terraces can make perhaps the proposed projects for a new Colombo -Katunayake Expressway superfluous. 

Perhaps, the expansion and improvement with bypasses and overhead flyovers of the existing Colombo-Negombo Road will be sufficient for the next decades provided a modern railway system is established.

The European railway wagon industry is providing nowadays (also for export) a plurality of modern diesel-powered lightweight rail carshuttle constructions with electric or hydrodynamic/mechanical power transmission on the basis of standard lorry or bus diesel engines. With a traction performance of 9 to 15 kw per metric ton train weight accelerations of more than 0.9 m/sec2 are possible.

Modern constructions have at least three redundant independent working brake systems: dynamic retarder or electric motorbrakes, electric/pneumatic diskbrakes and magnetic rail brakes. 

This makes decelerations of 2.5 m/sec2 or more possible. A quick service is not possible without date vacuum rail block brakes.

If the railway grave and scrapyard, which we can see behind Olcott Mawatha is cleaned up, then there will be additional land for a suburban shuttle terminus. 

The Fort Railway Station can also be extended on the east side towards Wijewardene Mawatha to separate the suburban traffic from the long distance traffic, as we learn from the visions of former Chief Mechanical Engineer of the Ceylon Government Railway and General Manager, Railways (Technical) P. Rajagopal in an article, "An electrified circular railway loop for Colombo suburbs" in October 1999. 

Decayed and rotten embankments and tracks should be rebuilt with upto date methods. A masterplan has to be worked out for an efficient and quick suburban railway with diesel traction on durable embankments and tracks (not like the approaches which we can see between Maradana and Ragama alongside the existing dual line with no proper embankment and drainage).

The engineering work for the track can be done in Sri Lanka with the skill of local engineers. This will also minimize the danger of waste, extravaganzas and embezzlement of funds and should do away with commissions.

The works of Colombo Dockyard Ltd. are excellent demonstrations of the capability and performance of Sri Lankan engineering if modern methods are used.The Railway Department should come to a similar level of management and performance.

The upgrading of the existing railway with separate level crossings, free tracks for a suburban shuttle system with a connection to the airport building and free trade zone together with the expansion and improvement of the existing Colombo-Negombo Road can be realized more quickly and can be of more help than the construction of a new expressway.

It comes to a political decision, to be more realistic and to give priority to the upgrading of the Sri Lanka railways and roads before continuing with the extravagant Colombo-Katunayake Expressway prestige project.
 

Katunayake Expressway:

Driving home a point

Point of View II

By Surath Wickramasinghe

In my own earlier articles I have pointed out that the Colombo-Katunayake Expressway should be extended up to the Seethawaka Free Trade Zone (FTZ) with a link to the Southern Highway at Kottawa. The Seethawaka to Colombo Expressway is important not only due to the connections to the Colombo Port and the Katunayake Airport but also to transport passengers to and from the Seethawaka FTZ. 

An extension of the Colombo/Katunayake Expressway should be from Colombo to Panadura as proposed in the Colombo Metropolitan Regional Structural Plan (CMRSP); but the difference between this and my proposal is that the expressway would be elevated and the railway lines re-located inland.

The public would then be able to use the sea beach without any barriers.

From Panadura, the Colombo Outer Circular Road will pass through Bandaragama, Kottawa, Athurugiriya, Biyagama, Kadawatha to Ragama. With this concept there would be two expressways that would cater to the southern and eastern traffic entering Colombo. Both routes will merge with the Colombo-Katunayake Expressway as well as with the Outer Circular Expressway and the Northern Highway.

The question being raised by a few persons is that the elevated Colombo/Katunayake Expressway concept is an expensive solution, which will cost at least three times more than a normal expressway.

I agree, if this is the outcome of a technical evaluation. However, if an economic and financial evaluation is considered, the outcome would be different.

The direct and indirect benefits would be enormous and would offset the additional expenditure incurred in the construction of the elevated expressway. 

What is important is to ensure that Sri Lanka is embarking on a modern attempt to be globally competitive, which should not be derailed due to the shortsighted, myopic thinking of a few.

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