Electric Trains As The Best Alternative Mode Of Transport For Fiji
Electric trains characterize productivity. Indeed, even today, no other kind can coordinate their low working costs, high tractive endeavors, and quick increasing speed. Many countries have invested in railway transportation, and the most effective being the electric locomotives. Fiji is now looking into the prospect of this new mode of travelling.
According to DEPTO (2018) a team of Indian Railway experts arrived into the country to undertake an assessment of the existing railway and recommend suitable designs to accommodate greater freight and passenger travel. In Fiji’s infrastructure budget of 2017-2018 reported by Elenoa (2017), with Fiji Roads Authority (FRA) being the company responsible for these works. $85. 2m was allocated for transport infrastructure investment sector project, $84m was allocated for renewals and replacements of roads and corresponding services, $80m was allocated for maintenance program, $55m was allocated for Nadi 2 – Votualevu Roundabout to Wailoaloa Road Roundabout, $60m was allocated for upgrading of rural roads program, $30. 6m for the upgrading and replacement of bridges. Furthermore, bridge renewals cost $21. 7m for storm damages and emergency response contingency fund; $18m for street-light programme, TC Winston – $13. 9m for rehabilitation of roads, bridges and jetties, $13. 2m. Furthermore, $12m was allocated for capital community program, and $11. 1m was allocated for the maintenance and renewal of jetties. This gave a total of about $484. 7m.
Henceforth from a total budget of $4. 3 billion, $484. 7 million was used on road works. The 2018-2019 budget is $4. 65 billion dollars, an increase of $0. 35 billion. Out of this total $563. 1 million is apportioned to the Fiji Roads Authority (FRA). This budget comprises of $29. 6 million for operating costs and $533. 4 million for capital expenditures. According to the 2018-2019 National Budget FRA Leaflet, $69, 538, 801 will be used to fund the Maintenance Programme, which carries out maintenance on the overall road network. As indicated by the numbers shown above, the budget for road works and repairs increased by $85. 5 million in just a year.
It can be concluded that for the years to come, the country’s annual budget will gradually increase due to more maintenance work and this is due to the congestion of vehicles on the roads. Furthermore, the stress applied on the bridges and roads by the increase in number of vehicles is a significant cause to road repairs and maintenance work. Conversely, funding for a locomotive vehicle such as an electric locomotive is contrastingly different. It may be costly to construct during the initial stages as stated by but the costing for the maintenance work required are less than that of road maintenance. Millions of dollars could be saved by the government with this form of transportation and could be used elsewhere. Therefore, electric locomotive is the best alternative mode of transport as it is more cost effective and is a sustainable development for Fiji.
