Chennai Metro plans to acquire six-coach trains, appoints a consultant to provide detailed project report in one month
The Hindu
The CMRL has decided to acquire six-coach trains in the Phase 1 and Phase 1 extension lines to cope with the surge in the crowd during peak hours and on extended weekends
With more travellers taking the Metro, Chennai Metro Rai Ltd. plans to add six-coach trains in Phase 1 and Phase 1 extension project covering 45 km in the city.
At present, four-coach trains are running in the 54-km network with an average speed of 34 kmph, with three general coaches and one coach for women. Since there has been a surge in the crowd during peak hours, the CMRL has decided to acquire six-coach trains.
“At present, on weekdays, the Metro trains carry about 2.5 lakh commuters and this number rises on extended weekends. Many passengers have asked us if we can improve the frequency. But we want a long-term solution and hence we plan to add six-coach trains. We have asked a consultant to carry out a study and it has already begun. The study will be completed in a month. Meanwhile, we are looking at funding options for purchasing these six-coach trains,” an official said.
The study will look at the existing and projected ridership of Chennai Metro Rail system, the pattern of ridership and recommend the number of six-coach trains to meet the demand and provide the cost estimate. “If we get the funds early for the additional trains, then we estimate that it may take about two years for us to receive the trains and put them to use,” he said.
Chennai Metro Rail intends to run three-coach and six-coach driverless trains in the Phase 2 project that is currently under construction in several parts of the city, covering 118.9 km. CMRL’s detailed project report has projected that over 7 lakh people would be taking the system while the present ridership is far less than the estimation.
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