Varanasi: The country’s first urban public transport ropeway is set to redefine commuting in Varanasi. Once operational, it will whisk passengers from Varanasi Junction railway station (Cantt) to the vicinity of Kashi Vishwanath Temple at Godowlia in just 16 minutes for Rs 50 — less than one third of the over 45 minutes it typically takes by road—offering a faster, greener, more economical and congestion-free alternative in one of India’s busiest pilgrimage cities.Built at a cost of nearly Rs 800 crore, the state-of-the-art ropeway is expected to begin operations around Dev Deepawali, which falls on Nov 24.The ropeway route begins at Varanasi Junction (Cantt Railway Station) and passes through Kashi Vidyapeeth and Rathyatra before terminating at Godowlia. Passengers visiting the Kashi Vishwanath Temple can disembark at Godowlia, from where the shrine is barely 700 metres away.The ropeway will operate with 10-seater gondola cabins, with one cabin arriving at each station every 120 seconds. Covering a distance of 3.85 km, it passes over some of the city’s most densely populated and congested areas and has the capacity to ferry up to 96,000 passengers daily. The fare has been fixed at Rs 10 per station, meaning passengers travelling across all five stations will pay Rs 50.Project divisional commissioner S Rajalingam said that all civil and finishing works will be completed by Aug 15. After it, mandatory technical tests will be conducted for a month, he said, adding that the final date to operationalise it as public transport will be decided after the same tests.Varanasi Development Authority vice-chairman Purn Bora said a cloakroom facility will also be available at the Cantonment railway station for outstation passengers. Ticket holders will be allowed to store their luggage free of charge for the first two hours. Thereafter, a fee of Rs 50 per hour will be charged for baggage weighing up to 15 kg.For group travel, the fare for a premium gondola has been fixed at Rs 2,000 per trip. Educational institutions and other groups making advance bookings will be charged Rs 1,200 per gondola per trip, he added.The project is expected to be ready by Aug 15 for technical trials.The foundation stone for the project was laid by Prime Minister Narendra Modi in March 2023. Conceived as a solution to Varanasi’s chronic traffic congestion, the ropeway will operate with 148 state-of-the-art gondola cabins, offering a swift and sustainable urban transit system.Taking a significant step towards providing modern, safe and convenient public transport in the city, the Uttar Pradesh govt issued a notification on June 25 fixing the ropeway fares. Under the notification, the minimum fare has been fixed at Rs 10 and the maximum at Rs 50 for travel between the Varanasi Cantt, Vidyapeeth, Rathyatra and Godowlia Chowk stations. The fare from Varanasi Cantt to Godowlia Chowk will be Rs 50, while passengers travelling from Vidyapeeth to Rathyatra will pay Rs 10.To encourage regular commuters, holders of the Kashi Smart Pass will receive a 20% discount on the notified fares. As a result, the fare from Varanasi Cantt to Godowlia Chowk will be Rs 40, while travel from Vidyapeeth to Rathyatra will cost Rs 8.The government order also provides for an annual 5% fare revision from April 1, with fares rounded off to the nearest multiple of Rs 5.According to officials, the ropeway is expected to transform mobility in Varanasi by significantly improving access to major landmarks, including Kashi Vishwanath Temple and Dashashwamedh Ghat. By providing a fast, reliable and congestion-free alternative to road transport, the system will enable devotees and tourists to reach these destinations more easily while reducing travel time and commuting costs.The ropeway project entered the trial-run phase in October 2025. It includes 15 years of operation and maintenance and is designed to carry nearly one lakh passengers every day.
