Delhi Meerut RRTS trial runs to begin

Preparations for the much-awaited trial run of the Regional Rapid Transit System (RRTS) project are in advanced stage and will be completed soon, officials said. Officials of the National Capital Region Transport Corporation (NCRTC) (the agency working on the RRTS project) said that testing of the four components of RRTS trains, signalling, track and over-head equipment, is also in advanced stages and trial runs will start from this month itself.

30,274 crore is the project

The 82-kilometre-long RRTS project is worth Rs 30,274 crore and will connect Delhi, Ghaziabad and Meerut with high-speed trains with speeds up to 180 kmph. The 17 km priority section in Ghaziabad will be the first RRTS section in the country to become operational.

NCRTC Chief Public Relations Officer Puneet Vats said, “Extensive testing is being done before the trial run, while the installation of OHE infrastructure, signaling and track is in advanced stage. Apart from this, finishing work at five stations of priority section is also in advanced stage. The trials will begin in different parts of the 17-km stretch and full-fledged passenger operations will begin after the last phase of the trial run."

The NCRTC completed the construction of a 17 km long viaduct with five stations at Sahibabad, Ghaziabad City, Guldhar, Duhai and Duhai Depot on 21 October. The priority section is likely to start passenger operations in March 2023 after necessary approvals after trial run. The Duhai depot currently houses the country's first RRTS trains, which are likely to be used for trial runs. These trains have been manufactured at Savli in Gujarat under the 'Make in India' initiative.

NCRTC will also invite the commissioner of metro rail safety for inspection

Before the trial run is over, NCRTC will also invite the commissioner of metro rail safety for inspection and final approval for the actual commencement of passenger operations. As per the detailed project report, the entire 82-km NCRTC section (82-km RRTS stretch) has been proposed for about 8 lakh commuters daily. It will have 25 stations and 22 of them will come under the jurisdiction of the state of Uttar Pradesh.

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