New Delhi, April 14 (IANS) The Namo Bharat train from Meerut crossed the Yamuna for the first time and reached the multi-modal transit hub at Sarai Kale Khan in southeast Delhi during trial runs conducted over the weekend, a precursor to the station’s inauguration in June, said an official on Monday.

National Capital Region Transport Corporation (NCRTC) conducted the first trials on the 4.5 km stretch from New Ashok Nagar to Sarai Kale Khan over the weekend, marking the maiden entry of Namo Bharat train into the Delhi-Ghaziabad-Meerut corridor’s biggest station.

During the trial runs, the Namo Bharat train crossed the river for the first time on a 1.3 km bridge and travelled over the Ring Road and Barapullah flyover before reaching Sarai Kale Khan station, which is scheduled for an inauguration in June.

The entire 82-km corridor of the RRTS is expected to be operationalised this year. At present, trains run on a 55-km section between New Ashok Nagar and Meerut South

The ongoing trial runs involved manually controlling the engine and wagons, moving them on track at slow speed to check the overhead power supply system, signalling system and platform screen doors.

The RRTS will have four stations in Delhi with about 3.8 km of the corridor, out of the 14 km in the national capital, under the ground. A two-km extension has been proposed for RRTS from Sarai Kale Khan to Jangpura.

At the Sarai Kale Khan station, the roof is currently being installed over the platforms while work on four elevators, 12 escalators and five exits is also nearing completion, an official said.

The start of Namo Bharat service from Sarai Kale Khan station will mark the integration of four modes of transport in the hub, including Indian Railways, Delhi Metro, and Inter-State Bus service. City public transport buses will also be available within the complex.

The RRTS station at Sarai Kale Khan is 215 metres long and 50 metres wide. To ensure seamless connectivity between the four modes of transport, a network of pedestrian bridges has been planned to link the Namo Bharat station with Northern Railway’s Hazrat Nizamuddin station, Metro station and Inter-State Bus Terminal.

The 84-km Regional Rapid Transit System (RRTS) corridor from Delhi to Meerut is being built at a cost of Rs 30,274 crore to reduce the travel time between Jangpura in Delhi and Modipuram in Meerut to one hour.

As per studies by the National Capital Region Planning Board (NCRPB), the Namo Bharat RRTS between Delhi and Meerut is likely to have an estimated daily ridership of eight lakh. It will have 25 stations. A total of 68 km of the corridor will be elevated, 13 km underground, and 3 km at-grade. The full operation from Delhi to Modipuram is expected to be completed in 2025.

–IANS

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