In a significant development, the Indian Railways' technical arm - Research, Standards and Design Organisation (RDSO) has approved oscillation tests for the Phase-2A and Phase-7 metro lines in Mumbai.
This move has enabled the Mumbai Metropolitan Region Development Authority (MMRDA) to invite the Commissioner of Metro Rail Safety (CMRS) to inspect lines, which are expected to begin in January 2023.
The CMRS will inspect the tracks, signalling, electrical systems and civil works before approving the operations of passenger service.
It is pertinent to note that in October, it cleared the first step of RDSO (Research Designs and Standards Organisation) testing.
At present, Mumbai's cumulative Metro network has a length of 32km, after the 20km corridor of Phase I of lines 7 and 2A (Dahanukarwadi-Aarey-Dahisar) opened in April.
Upon completion, ridership will increase because Line 7 will get connected with Line 1 at Andheri (East) on the Western Express Highway (WEH) station and D N Nagar Metro station on Andheri West on Line 2.
MMRDA intends to use 28 rakes to conduct service on lines 7 and 2A and run with services at a frequency of 7 minutes. As per MMRDA, Metro lines 2A and 7 are expected to carry 11.37 lakh passengers per day by 2031.
On the other hand, MMRDA expects road traffic to reduce by 25 per cent after commissioning of the entire route.
Besides, the western suburbs can expect a smooth ride all the way till Bhayander once Line 9 (Dahisar to Bhayander) gets commissioned by October 2024. MMRDA also has plans to extend Line 7 till the domestic airport.
MMRDA had hoped to open these lines by October 2019 but the deadline was revised to December 2020 due to pandemic-related delays.
The Mumbai Metro Line-2A connects Dahisar to DN Nagar, while Line-7 connects Dahisar East to Andheri East. Both lines have a total length of 35 kilometres, with only a 20-kilometre stretch between Aarey and Dhanukarwadi.
The Prime Minister laid the foundation stone for both projects, costing INR 12,618 crores, in October 2015.
Also Read: Mumbai Metro: Phase 2 Line 2A & 7 Likely To Be Operational By December 2022
Share
Tweet
