Noida-Greater Noida Aqua Line gets safety clearance, NMRC seeks inauguration date

Noida-Greater Noida Aqua line has got the approval to begin the commercial operations after Noida Metro Rail Corporation (NMRC) received a final and mandatory safety inspection report. Following the approval report, the NMRC has now written to the Uttar Pradesh government to finalise the date of inauguration. The much-awaited Aqua Line that would run between Sector 71 station in Noida and the Depot Station in Greater Noida, covering 29.7 km through 21 stations. "The Commissioner of Metro Rail Safety (CMRS) report has been received and it has its sanction for the commercial operations of the metro service. The report also praised the civil and track work of the metro system,” NMRC Executive Director P D Upadhyay said. 

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NMRC's managing director has written to the state government for finalizing the date of inauguration, said Upadhyay, who was in Lucknow Friday, handed over a letter to Chief Secretary Anup Chandra Pandey. 

“The fares of the Aqua Line would be decided in the NMRC Board meeting scheduled on December 28,” he said. "Chairman Sanjay K Murthy, the additional secretary to the Ministry of Housing and Urban Affairs will chair the meeting, “he added.

Earlier, the Commissioner of Metro Rail Safety (CMRS) team inspected the various metro stations and the speed of Metro coaches near the Noida-Greater Noida expressway. On December 4, the second phase of the Metro link from Noida Sector 71 to Knowledge Park 5 in Greater Noida was approved by the Greater Noida Industrial Development Authority (GNIDA). The extension will comprise nine stations and cost Rs 2602 crore, according to officials.  

The Aqua Line will start from Noida Sector 71 and will run through sectors 50, 51, 75, 76, 78, 101, 81, 83, 85, 137, 142, 143, 144, 147, 149 and 153.

The trains are designed to run at a maximum speed of 80 km per hour with an average speed of 37.5 km per hour. Every train is equipped with a passenger information system, a public address system, and an emergency announcement system from the operation control centre. Besides, all the stations are equipped with platform screen doors. 

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Besides, the Delhi Metro network is going to get more intricate with operations starting in two more corridors by the end of the month. The two other corridors set to be opened are the 9.7-km stretch connecting Lajpat Nagar to Mayur Vihar Pocket 1 on the Pink Line and the 9.4-km stretch from Dilshad Garden to New Bus Adda extension of the Red Line. The Dilshad Garden-New Bus Adda line will touch the interior parts of Ghaziabad. The elevated section will comprise eight stations: Shahid Nagar, Raj Bagh, Rajendra Nagar, Shyam Park, Mohan Nagar, Arthala, Hindon River Station and New Bus Adda. The opening of this 50-km-long combined corridor will finally mark the completion of the Delhi Metro's much-anticipated Phase-III project.