Airport Metro: Green signal,but not on fast lane

The CMRS on Monday gave the 22.7-km link its approval,though with a few riders. The line will open to the public after the security aspect has been decided.

Other than the restricted speed,the trains will have to run at 20 km/hr when they cross the under-construction stations of Dhaula Kuan and Aerocity,leading to further increase in travel time. “The line has been commissioned for opening to the public as the four approved stations and other passenger amenities have been found fit for operations. However,train speed restrictions have been imposed and the operator has to work on a few aspects before scaling up the speed,for which a separate application has to be sent,” R K Kardam,CMRS,told Newsline.

The four stations on the line that will function when it opens to the public are New Delhi,Shivaji Stadium,IGI Airport and Dwarka Sector 21 — all of which have four platforms each. Only the island platforms at these stations will be opened first. The decision to operate other platforms will be taken depending on the ridership pattern.

Regarding the security issues,the DMRC and concessionaire Reliance Infrastructure are to meet on Tuesday,sources said. The DMRC will have to consult the Ministry of Home Affairs and the Ministry of Urban Development to decide whether the CISF or private security guards will man the stations.

Also,when the line opens,it will have a 16-hour operation schedule,as opposed to the 20 hours decided as per the concession contract.

“We came to know that the line has received CMRS approval. We are yet to receive the formal letter from them,” said a spokesperson of the Delhi Airport Metro Express Private Limited,the concessionaire.

The promises that fell through
Slower speed: It was initially planned to be run at 120 km/hr,this has been restricted to 105 km/hr
Longer travel time: It will take more than the promised 18 minutes to travel between New Delhi and IGI
Shorter Duration: Unlike the 20-hour schedule decided in the concession agreement,trains will run only for 16 hours
No baggage check-in: The facility will not be available at the time of opening