RRTS: Officials inspect ongoing work, open innovation centre at Duhai depot

The 82km long project, which aims to provide high-speed train connectivity between Delhi, Ghaziabad and Meerut is being constructed with financial aid from ADB -- in August 2020, the bank approved a US $1 billion loan for the RRTS

A team officials from the Asian Development Bank (ADB), along with senior officers of the NCR Transport Corporation (NCRTC), on Saturday inspected the progress of work on the Regional Rapid Transit System (RRTS) project and also inaugurated a “centre of innovation” at the Duhai depot in Ghaziabad.

ADB vice-president Shixin Chen inaugurated the centre of innovation in Duhai along with NCRTC’s managing director Vinay Kumar Singh. (Sakib Ali/HT Photo)

The 82km long project, which aims to provide high-speed train connectivity between Delhi, Ghaziabad and Meerut is being constructed with financial aid from ADB -- in August 2020, the bank approved a US $1 billion loan for the RRTS. The proposed corridor will have 25 stations and with three depots, including the one in Duhai.

ADB vice-president Shixin Chen inaugurated the centre of innovation in Duhai along with NCRTC’s managing director Vinay Kumar Singh.

The centre is supported by grants from ADB’s Urban Climate Change Resilience Trust Fund. Officials said the centre comes with state-of-the-art equipment and technologies for training staff and drivers of the RRTS.

“The NCRTC is using advanced technologies such as virtual reality, augmented reality, and information modelling for operational efficiency as well as training purposes. The innovation centre will bring in the latest technologies for design, development, and operation of the RRTS network. The centre will also house an advanced simulator for training purposes,” said Puneet Vats, chief public relations officer, NCRTC.

Officials also inspected the tunnel works at Anand Vihar, which is one of the underground stations on the RRTS network. The tunnelling is being taken up with the help of tunnel boring machines and the underground section will run from Anand Vihar to Vaishali in Ghaziabad.

During a visit to Sarai Kale Khan and Anand Vihar stations, Shixin also appreciated the efforts made by the NCRTC for ensuring multimodal integration. Once ready, the RRTS stations will give passengers seamless connectivity with other transport modes such as the Delhi Metro, buses from Anand Vihar ISBT and trains from the Anand Vihar railway station, among others.

“With ADB as our trusted partner, NCRTC is not only planning and implementing customer-centric projects but also continues to lead to overall capacity development in the field of urban transport. The economic, social, and environmental impact of RRTS is going to be long-lasting, and the adoption of new age technologies by NCRTC will play an important role,” said Singh.

The 82km long RRTS project is slotted for commissioning in March 2025. A part of it, a 17km section in Ghaziabad between Sahibabad and Duhai, is being developed as a priority section and will be the country’s first RRTS section to open in March 2023.