Transportation in Kerala

Kerala had over the years developed a good infrastructure in the fields of Transport. The important cities and other places are well connected by road and rail network. Kerala has very high road density.

Kerala State Transport Project (KSTP)

A project of Public Works Department of the Government of Kerala is Kerala State Transport Project (KSTP) and was launched in 2002. The aim was to improve the State Road network and Inland Water Transport (IWT) with the aid of World Bank.
Kerala Transport Development Finance Corporation (KTDFC)

In order to finance the transport services in Kerala, Kerala Transport Development Finance Corporation was established which is a non banking Financial Company.
National highway

The National Highway network is around 1600 kms long which constitute only about 2.3 percent of the total of India. There are 8 National Highways in Kerala and the National Highways that passes through our state are NH 17, NH 47 and NH 49. The total length of roads in our state is around 173592 km.

National Transportation Planning and Research Centre (NATPAC) was established as a unit of Kerala State Electronics Development Corporation (KELTRON) with the objective of promoting scientific research, planning and development in different aspects of transportation.

KSRTC is a public sector undertaking which is responsible for performing the transport operations in the State. The district of Kerala with lowest number of vehicles is Wayanad followed by Idukki and the district that has the highest number of vehicles is Ernakulam followed by Thiruvananthapuram.
Railways

The total length of railway route in Kerala is around 1,050 km and it covers 13 railway routes. The railway network has gauge operations and it includes both broad guage lines and meter guage lines. The railway operations in the state are controlled by three divisions namely Thiruvananthapuram, Palakkad and Madurai Divisions of southern Railway. There are many long distance trains from Kerala to various destinations.

The Kerala Express

The longest daily train running in India is the Kerala Express which connects Trivandrum Central with New Delhi. It is a superfast train that covers a distance of 3036 kms. This train record first position for the longest electric engine connected train between Ernakulam and New Delhi. This train covers nine states, namely Kerala, Tamil Nadu, Andhra Pradesh, Maharashtra, Madhya Pradesh, Uttar Pradesh, Rajasthan, Haryana and Delhi.

Kerala Ports

Kerala has numerous water bodies. In Kerala we have a major port and 17 non-major ports. Cochin is the only major port in Kerala that spreads over 827 ha. This port connects to hinterland through NH17 and NH49. Neendakara, Alappuzha, Beypore are minor ports and Vizhinjam, Valiyathura, Thankasseri, Munambam, Ponnani, Vadakara, Thalasseri, Kannur, Azhikkal, Kasaragod, manjeshwaram, Neeleshwaram, Kayamkulam and Manacodam are intermediate ports.
Inland water transport

Waterways are used for commercial Inland Water Transport. The Government agencies which are involved in the development of Inland Water Transport are Coastal shipping and Inland Navigation department, State Water Transport Department and Kerala Shipping and Inland Navigation Corporation. Inland waterways in Kerala also include navigable rivers which constitute to around 41. The main arterial water way in the state is the West coast canal.

State Water Transport Department

They are responsible for providing inland water transport facilities to those staying in the water logged areas. They provide transportation at cheap rates. This type of transport system is pollution free, less prone to accidents, and is affordable.
Kerala Shipping and Inland Navigation Corporation (KSINC)

This company is owned by the Government of Kerala. They have hauled large tons of cargo and carried numerous passengers. They are the pioneers of inland navigation in the Kerala state.

Air transport

Kerala has three air ports at Thiruvananthapuram, Nedumbasseri and Karippur with all of them handling both International and domestic flights. Thiruvananthapuram and Karippur airports are owned by Government of India and the Nedumbasseri airport is owned by Cochin International Airport Ltd (CIAL) which is a company set up with public private participation.