Delhi Metro airport line speed to go up to 100kmph

This is the first step in eventually increasing the operational speed of the line to 120 kmph, which will bring down the travel time between the two stations to around 15 minutes, officials said

The operational speed of Delhi Metro’s Airport Express Line will be increased from the existing 80 kmph to 100 kmph starting Wednesday, officials aware of the matter said, adding that the move will bring down the travel time between the New Delhi and IGI Airport stations from 19 minutes by around a couple of minutes.

When the Airport Express Line became functional in 2013, the trains initially operated at a speed of 50 kmph. (HT Archive)

“The operational speed of Delhi Metro’s Airport Express Line is being increased to 100 kmph. This is a major upgrade from the perspective of passenger convenience on this section. This will help in further saving time for the passengers.” said Anuj Dayal, principal executive director, DMRC.

This is the first step in eventually increasing the operational speed of the line to 120 kmph, which will bring down the travel time between the two stations to around 15 minutes, officials said.

When the Airport Express Line became functional in 2013, the trains initially operated at a speed of 50 kmph. Since 2014, the trains on the line have been operating at a top speed of around 80 kmph, though the sanctioned speed for the line is 90 kmph.

Operationally, the trains and systems of the corridor are designed for a speed of up to 135 kmph.

The plan to increase the speed of the trains includes replacing the existing SKL 15HF clamps on the corridor with SKL 15 tension clamps, which are better suited for high-frequency train movement, officials said.

Once trains are able to successfully run at a speed of 100 kmph for around one month, the next step will be to look at increasing the operational speed to 110 kmph and then eventually to 120 kmph, officials said.

Pre-Covid, the line averaged around 50,000-55,000 commuters a day, but after the resumption of operations post lockdown, the average ridership has been around 45,000 a day.

Currently, trains on the corridor cover the 19.4km stretch between the two stations in 19 minutes, which includes stoppages at the Shivaji Stadium Metro station, Dhaula Kuan Metro station and the Delhi Aerocity Metro station. The total corridor length, including the Dwarka Sector-21 metro station, is 22.7km, with the total journey from one end to the other taking 24 minutes.