Jamshedpur, May 6: Traffic snarls and vehicle pollution could be a thing of the past in some of the important cities of Jharkhand if a wish of a Malaysian company becomes reality.

Sounds strange? Well not for the officials of ATZHCM, a subsidiary of Podessco, which has expertise in constructing monorails and approached the state government for a monorail here.

A monorail is a mass rapid transport system whereby a train-like vehicle runs on a track. The tracks are constructed at an elevation.

Experts in modern transport system claim that monorail is a cheaper and safer alternative to metro rail. There is no risk of derailment or jerks as the coach moves on rubber tyres, which hold the rail from top and bottom.

Sources in the transport ministry said a group of experts from the Malaysian firm had recently visited the state capital and had “fruitful” interaction with senior officials.

The foreign experts made the government officers aware of the benefits of having a monorail transport system in the state. Not only would it ease traffic during peak hours, they are reported to have said, but it would also reduce pollution. If more people start using the system to move about within the city, it would reduce the need to utilise cars, buses or autos and thus reduce exhaust fumes.

Besides, the expert said, monorail costs lower that metro rail system, in operation in Delhi and Calcutta.

Chairman of LVL Construction D.K. Agarwal, the Indian partner of the Malaysian company, confirmed their plans for a monorail in Jharkhand.

“Our experts met government officials and told them about the economical and environmental benefits of setting up a monorail system in the state. The government officers were made aware of the environmental-friendly system that is in operation in countries such as Japan and Australia. It can be constructed at one-third the cost of metro rail,” said Agarwal.

While constructing a km of monorail costs about Rs 32 crore, metro rail for the same distance would cost Rs 110 crore, said the chairman.

Besides, monorail can travel at high speeds. “Monorail can travel at 300 km per hour. Keeping in mind the Indian conditions (where station within a city would be close) we can expect an average speed of 75 km per hour,” he said.