Metro Arrives in South Mumbai: A Successful Test Run for the First Underground Corridor in the City
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This week saw the successful completion of a pre-trial run by a metro train in Mumbai, signaling a significant milestone for the city’s public transportation system and its historic arrival into the city center.
The train arrived at Dadar station after traveling without incident along the Colaba-Bandra-Seepz route (Metro 3). At the Aarey metro station, the pre-trial run got underway.
The 33.5 km long Metro Line 3 is being implemented by the Mumbai Metro Rail Corporation (MMRC).
Metro 3 is an important route that primarily serves commuters from south Mumbai because all other routes that are presently being built are located in the suburbs and other parts of the Mumbai Metropolitan Region.
As soon as the first train arrived at Dadar metro station, S K Gupta, Director (Projects) of the MMRC, the city’s metro network organization, expressed joy. He outlined intentions to boost train frequency in the upcoming days, not only to Dadar but also further south to the Siddhivinayak Metro station.
Phase II, which runs to Acharya Atre Chowk in Worli, is almost finished, and the commuter stations at Dadar and Siddhivinayak are ready to open. Phase I includes ten stations from Aarey to BKC, and Phase II has six stations from BKC to Acharya Atre Chowk.
According to the metro agency, experiments are presently taking place between the Aarey and BKC stations, with plans to extend the service farther south as building moves forward. Phase II trials will start in full after the Phase I corridor is operational.
After the metro agency has operationalized up to Acharya Atre Chowk, it will concentrate on Phase III, which covers 17 stations and runs up to Cuffe Parade, according to Economic Times.
The metro agency declared that it was prepared and that it could run more than 260 services with 19 metro trains between BKC and Aarey during Phase I operations.
Although Phase I was supposed to end in April, Phase II in July, and Phase III by October, according to previous pronouncements, the trial run’s development suggests there may be delays. Following the acquisition of safety certificates and approvals, commercial activities will begin.
The Metro 3 is an eight-car train that has a 75% motor for improved movement and operating efficiency—a first for India. In comparison, other metro lines usually use fifty percent motors.
Because of this special quality, authorities such as the RDSO and CMRS have been closely monitoring the trials before approving operational certification.
Initial Subterranean Corridor
Metro-3, which stretches 33.5 km in the Colaba-Bandra-SEEPZ route, is Mumbai’s first underground metro corridor.
With 26 subterranean and one at-grade stop, it will link SEEPZ in the north-central region of the city with the Cuffe Parade commercial sector in the far south.
The project, which is expected to cost Rs 33,000 crore, includes backing from a number of sources, including the Japan International Cooperation Agency, which is Japan’s technical and lending agency.
The entire corridor to Cuffe Parade is anticipated to open by September 2024, with the first phase—which connects Aarey to BKC—starting operations in May.
