Trials on Badarpur line

The Delhi Metro Rail Corporation today began trial runs between the Central Secretariat and Lajpat Nagar of the Central Secretariat Badarpur corridor. The DMRC aims to make the line operational before the Commonwealth Games get underway in October. HT reports

The Delhi Metro Rail Corporation (DMRC) on Friday began trial runs between the Central Secretariat and Lajpat Nagar of the Central Secretariat (CTST) Badarpur corridor. The DMRC aims to make the line operational before the Commonwealth Games get underway in October.

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The first trial run on the nine km stretch was conducted at a controlled speed. “These trials will go on for a few weeks after which they will be extended to Okhla and beyond as work get completed on these sections. We hope to make the corridor operational before the Games. The line will be opened after obtaining the statutory safety clearances from the Commissioner of Metro Rail Safety (CMRS),” said Anuj Dayal, DMRC spokesperson.

The 20.16 km CTST Badarpur corridor is the second Standard Gauge corridor after the Inderlok Mundka corridor. It will have 16 stations.

During the trial runs on Friday, officials checked the train’s interaction with the civil structure to ensure there was no physical blockage during its movement on the track.

“This was one of the most challenging lines to build as the time available for its construction was 41 months. This line was sanctioned on April 20, 2007 and the DMRC intends to commission it by September, 2010 before the Commonwealth Games,” said Dayal.

Meanwhile, in order to increase its passenger capacity, the DMRC has ordered 114 new Metro cars. The first batch of the new cars is expected to arrive by December this year and by 2011 end the whole consignment will be delivered.