Chandigarh, 29 January 2025: The Tricity Metro project is financially viable but may take at least a decade to turn profitable for operators, according to an assessment presented by an eight-member committee during a meeting chaired by Haryana Additional Chief Secretary Ashok Khemka at the UT Guest House in Chandigarh.
The committee was instructed to reassess financial viability and submit a detailed report by February 18.
The committee, formed three months ago, studied Metro systems in Ahmedabad, Kochi, Jaipur, and Noida to formulate its findings.
The report noted that Metro projects are typically planned with a 30-year operational horizon, citing Ahmedabad Metro as a case study where initial capital investment recovery is expected within five years, but profitability remains a long-term goal.
“Metro systems require extensive ridership calculations, and we need a more detailed explanation of the methodology used,” Khemka said, directing the committee to refine its projections before the next meeting.
The ₹24,000-crore Tricity Metro project is expected to recover construction costs within the first five years, but long-term viability depends on sustained ridership growth.
The Ahmedabad Metro, which launched in 2019, was also affected by unforeseen challenges such as the COVID-19 pandemic, delaying business recovery.
The committee, established on November 1, 2024, by UT Administrator Gulab Chand Kataria, was tasked with evaluating the financial feasibility of the Metro system, reviewing reports from the Comptroller and Auditor General (CAG), and submitting findings by mid-January 2025.
For Chandigarh, the Union Ministry of Housing and Urban Affairs (MoHUA) has already approved fully underground Metro lines for heritage Sectors 1 to 30, as part of the larger Metro plan for the Tricity.