The National Capital Region Transport Corporation’s (NCRTC) Delhi-Ghaziabad-Meerut Regional Rapid Transit System (RRTS) project has achieved a significant milestone with the completion of tunnelling work in the underground section of Meerut.
According to an update shared by the NCRTC officials, the tunnelling work in the Meerut section of the Delhi-Ghaziabad-Meerut RRTS has been concluded. It may be noted that the Delhi-Ghaziabad-Meerut RRTS corridor’s underground section in Meerut comprises three stations, namely Meerut Central, Bhainsali and Begumpul.
The NCRTC will provide local transit services and Meerut Metro on the RRTS network with 13 stations operating covering a distance of 23 km.
Tunnelling work in Meerut’s underground section
To connect these stations, a total of six parallel tunnels have been constructed in three segments. The sixth and last tunnel stretches over one kilometre between Bhainsali to Begumpul.
“The NCRTC team has completed the tunnelling of all three sets of parallel tunnels of the entire underground section in Meerut spanning approximately 5.5 km has been achieved within only 15 months,” a statement by the corporation said.
“The first tunnel breakthrough in Meerut was achieved in October 2022 and with the sixth and last breakthrough, tunnelling is complete in the underground section,” it said.
In the tunnelling process, seven segments are combined to make one ring. Each segment is 1.5 metre long and 275 mm thick. These segments and rings are connected with the help of bolts.
Among the underground stations, Meerut Central and Bhainsali will serve as metro stations, while Begumpul station will provide the services of both local metro and RAPIDX.
Track-laying work in Meerut
Currently, track-laying and OHE installation are being carried out in the already completed tunnels.
About 35,000 pre-cast segments (pre-cast structures constructed from pre-stressed concrete) have been used for the construction of all six tunnels in Meerut.
Commissioning of RRTS project
The NCRTC is working round-the-clock to achieve the target of commissioning the entire Delhi-Ghaziabad-Meerut RRTS corridor by 2025. The priority section of the Delhi-Ghaziabad-Meerut RRTS corridor is ready for operation. The entire corridor is scheduled to be operational for the public by 2025.
Prior to that, a 17-kilometre-long priority section between Sahibabad and Duhai Depot in Ghaziabad is ready for operations. The priority section will have five stations. These are – Sahibabad, Ghaziabad, Guldhar, Duhai and Duhai Depot.
Operational speed of RAPIDX trains
The RAPIDX trains will operate at a maximum speed of 160 kmph. However, the route has a design speed of 180 kmph.
(With inputs from PTI)