27km stretch on freight route to ease train movement for Delhi-NCR: Rly

The stretch between Ahraura and Mughal Sarai (DDU junction) in Uttar Pradesh is expected to benefit passenger trains

A newly opened 27km stretch as part of the eastern dedicated freight corridor will considerably decongest the route for passenger trains heading towards Delhi-NCR, according to railway officials.

Trains bound for the New Delhi railway station, Anand Vihar station and Old Delhi are likely to see an improvement in their travel times, the official added, wishing not to be named. (Sanjeev Verma/HT Photo)

The stretch, made operational between Ahraura and Mughal Sarai (DDU junction) in Uttar Pradesh, is also expected to considerably benefit passenger trains coming to the Capital from Bihar and UP, with their punctuality set to go up to 80-90% from the existing 45%, the officials said.

The new stretch of the eastern DFC was sanctioned on June 15, and is part of the now-seamless 1,875 km long corridor between Bihar and Gujarat.

“...all trains coming to Delhi from Lucknow, Kanpur, Prayagraj, Mughal Sarai and Patna will run much faster. Already, the punctuality of the Prayagraj division has improved from around 45% to 70% since the corridor was launched and similarly, the punctuality is expected to improve further in the coming days for the other divisions too in the vicinity, possibly touching 80 to 90%,” said a senior official from the Dedicated Freight Corridor Corporation of India Limited (DFCCIL), which executed this freight corridor.

Trains bound for the New Delhi railway station, Anand Vihar station and Old Delhi are likely to see an improvement in their travel times, the official added, wishing not to be named.

“We have shifted around 200 to 250 trains to this freight corridor, which translates to a much clearer route for passenger trains on the earlier route,” said RK Jain, managing director, DFCCIL. He added that one of the biggest challenges in building the corridor was connecting it to the Pt. Deen Dayal Upadhyay (DDU) station yard.

“DDU, the largest railway yard in Asia, was the biggest bottleneck as goods trains were getting stuck there. This diversion to the dedicated corridor will considerably help,” he added.