Delhi Mass Rapid Transit System

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Delhi metro network, as it will look by 2010

Delhi Metro, operational since 2002, is seen as a model for other metros. With growth in economy and technology, India is welcoming modernization.

Dwarka Station on Delhi Metro

A Delhi Metro station

The Delhi Mass Rapid Transit System (MRTS), or Delhi Metro (Hindi: दिल्ली मेट्रो), is a rapid transit system in the Indian city of Delhi operated by the Delhi Metro Rail Corporation Limited.

The Delhi Metro was opened on December 24, 2002. It became the second underground rapid transit system in India, after the one in operation in Kolkata. Unlike the Calcutta Metro, however, the Delhi Metro has a combination of elevated, at-grade and underground lines. Trains operating within the network typically travel at speeds below 80 km/h, or 50 mph, and stop for an average of 20 seconds at each MRTS station. The MRTS rolling stock are manufactured by ROTEM, relying on 1676 mm (5 ft 6 in) track gauge. Since its opening in 2002, two more lines have been added to the system, bringing the total network length to 56 km, with 50 underground and elevated stations on three separate lines. trains run from 6:00am till 10:00pm, daily.

Phase I of the network comprises 65.11 km of route length with 13.01 km underground called Metro corridor and 52.10 km surface/elevated called Rail Corridor.

Phase II is presently under construction, with a target completion date of 2010.

[edit] Lines

As of November, 2006:

[edit] Phase II extensions

The following extensions for Phase II are confirmed^[1] and under planning or construction.

[edit] Other extensions

A high-speed rail service from New Delhi Railway Station to Indira Gandhi International Airport is also in the planning phase. This line, along with Line 5(Inderlok to Mundaka) and Line 6 (Central Secretariat-Badarpur) are to be constructed using standard gauge. [1]

[edit] Facilities

Each train consists of four coaches and can carry up to 240 seated and 300 standing passengers. The trains operate at intervals of three to five minutes between 6am to 10pm. Coaches on all trains are air-conditioned and a temperature of 27-29 °C is maintained in them.

All metro stations and trains have their own specially trained Metro police to provide security. All stations and trains are also monitored by closed-circuit cameras.

Most of the stations have ATMs, food outlets, cafés, etc.

[edit] Ticketing

Delhi Metro customers have the following choices for the ticket purchase.

• Smart card: These cards are most convenient for the frequent commuters. Valid for one year, these travel cards are available in the denominations of Rs. 50, Rs. 100, Rs. 200 and Rs. 500. 10% bonus is given on each recharge or new card. A deposit of extra Rs.100 needs to be made before buying a new card.
• Tourist card: These cards can be used for unlimited travel over short periods of time. There are two kinds of tourist cards - 1 day and the 3 day. Cost of 1-day card is Rs. 70 and 3-day card is Rs. 200.
• Token: These tokens are valid only for a single journey on the day of purchase and the value depends on the destination. Fares are decided based on the destination station using the token table.

[edit] Rolling stock

The Metro rolling stock was initially manufactured by a consortium of companies comprising ROTEM, Mitsubishi Corporation (MC), and Mitsubishi Electric Corporation (MELCO). The train sets are now being built by Bharat Earth Movers Limited (BEML). The trains run on the broad gauge (1676 mm) and consist of 3.2 metre wide stainless steel lightweight coaches with vestibules permitting movement throughout the length of the train. Trains currently consist of 4 coaches - two driving coaches and two Motor coaches. The system is extendable up to 8 coaches. Extension is expected in March 2006 after the completion of the Blue Line.

The power supply is at 25 kV AC through overhead catenary. The underground sections have Centralized Automatic Train Control (CATC) comprising Automatic Train Operation (ATO), Automatic Train Protection (ATP) and Automatic Train Signaling (ATS) systems.

[edit] Aesthetics

Mosaic on the Shahdara station.

Each station has been designed with a unique scheme. Local art college students have designed decorative murals at the Metro stations.

[edit] Safety

A new law enforcement body, the Delhi Metro Police, has been set up especially to deal with law and order issues on the metro. Trains are at platform level with a small gap to allow easy entry and exit to passengers. Stations are monitored with closed-circuit TV. Overall security is monitored from a central control location. It is also one of the few metros in the world to have plainclothed metro-marshals on trains. Emergency communication between the passengers and the driver is provided in each coach.

[edit] Environment protection, and occupational health & safety

Most of the Metro stations on the Blue Line conduct Rainwater harvesting as an environmental protection measure [2]. The Delhi Metro has established large optimally-designed catchment areas at many stations. The water from these catchment areas diverts the rain water from the roof tops catchments by drain pipes to settlement/filtration tanks which clean and then store the water in borewells (located underground, below the stations). The storage capacity of each borewell is in the range of 28000 litres annually.

[edit] Certifications

• ISO 14001 - Environmental Management System. DMRC claims to be the first Metro in the World to receive this certification at the construction stage.

• OHSAS 18001 - Occupational Health and Safety Assessment sequence 18001

[edit] References

1. ^ Map of extensions, DMRC

• Indian Railways Fan Club

[edit] See also

• List of rapid transit systems
• Indraprastha - Dwarka Sub City Line
• Vishwa Vidyalaya - Central Secretariat Line
• Shahdara - Rithala Line
• Hyderabad Mass Rapid Transit System

[edit] External links

Wikimedia Commons has media related to:

Delhi Mass Rapid Transit System

• Delhi Metro Rail Corporation Ltd. (DMRC)
• Pictures, Delhi Metro on First Day, 25th Dec 2002, By Roopesh Kohad
• Delhi Gets a Metro, by Andrew Blackwell
• Pictures, December 2003, By Ashish Vashisht
• Delhi Rail & Travel Information
• Article: Delhi a Metro Dream
• Indian Express - Colour coding on Delhi Metro
• Let horse sense prevail - Article in Indian Express by Bibek Debroy telling us why we should choose Standard Gauge over Broad for the Delhi Metro. Dated Wednesday, January 23, 2002]
• Trenchless Digging - Article in the Tribune (Chandigarh) by D. S. Dhillon. Dated Thursday, January 29, 2004
• More Pictures