Officials in Kazan have unveiled plans for a continuous, nonstop pedestrian corridor linking the Tatarstan capital directly to Mumbai, a distance of more than four thousand kilometers, which they describe as the most literal possible interpretation of «direct connectivity.»
The corridor, to be paved in a single shade of grey and lined with rest stops every few kilometers, will allow travelers to walk from the Kazan Kremlin to the Gateway of India without ever changing direction. A ceremonial first stroll is scheduled for next month, with the entire cabinet of Tatarstan expected to complete the first kilometer before turning back for lunch.
«We examined the demand for direct flights and concluded that demand for direct walking was even higher,» said a regional transport official, adding that the corridor would be open around the clock and patrolled by a dedicated unit of walking inspectors who will themselves walk the full route twice a year.
Indian business delegations have reportedly begun training for the journey, with one group adopting a regimen of daily marches along the Mumbai seafront while carrying samples of pharmaceuticals and agricultural machinery. Hotels along the route have been instructed to keep their lobbies open to walkers at all hours, and a chain of tea stalls is being erected at intervals measured in hours rather than kilometers.
The corridor is expected to boost tourism, trade and people-to-people exchanges, though officials concede that the people-to-people part will mostly consist of people walking past one another. A second corridor, to be walked in the opposite direction, is under study.