BHOPAL: Next time you get off a bus along Board Office interaction and need to grab a bite or thirsty, just look up. Planners at smart city office have proposed a roof top restaurant on a bus stop. That’s not all, for tech geeks there would be ‘internet of things’ hub and the relaxed can play chess on a life size chess board.
Giving development a new buzz, Bhopal Smart City development corporation limited (BSCDCL) dubs the idea as ‘smart urbanism’. Simply put, it is re-thinking existing public spaces and designing them to suit varied public needs.
“Our objective is to create a smart city that is committed to integrated, sustainable and participative urban growth. It would be integration of digital technologies, smart infrastructures that deliver to public needs,” said BSCDCL CEO and BMC additional commissioner, Chandramauli Shukla.
The proposed project would recreate the space MP Nagar Zone II (in front of Jyoti Cinema) and along Board Office intersection, much of which has been illegally occupied by street vendors. Bhopal Municipal Corporation (BMC) would recreate the design of the space. Street vendors like the florists (across Jyoti Cinema) shifted in friendlier kiosks.
Smart city officials also envisage a Bus Stop with a roof top restaurant. The intersection is the triangulation point for almost 50% of the public transport buses run by Bhopal City Link Limited (BCCL).
The ‘bus stop cafe’ would be a vantage point for the new hub that would also have an IOT hub. BSCDCL hopes it would become an innovation spot for techies. Solar powered smart street poles, 5G scaling internet connectively should be an attraction for many youngsters.
The project has been pegged at Rs 9 crore, redesigning both sides of the road. Bus track of around 250 metres would be coloured. Cyclists would have a dedicated parking stand along the bus stop.
Catering for motorised vehicles, smart city would offer recharging point for electric cards. Parking roof top would be used to generate solar power.
In a first for Bhopal, pedestrians would be able to zip across using sky walk. A concept smart city officials say would be replicated across the city including New Market, MP Nagar and Bhopal’s main railway station. A sky walk from Bhopal main railway station to Bus stop at Hamidia road has also been cleared by the Bhopal Municipal Corporation (BMC).
The projects fall under pan-city development of Bhopal smart city project. Officials expect the ‘smart urbanism’ project in MP Nagar would be completed within 6 to 8 months after tender is cleared. Smart city company expects to make the investment as a revenue earner for the BMC. Calculating the cost of prime real estate in the area, experts indicate that similar ‘smart urbanism’ would easily be replicated in other commercial areas of the city.
Source: http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com
