KOLKATA: Trial runs will be conducted on the Down line (Noapara-bound) of the Noapara-airport stretch for the time being since the Up line is still incomplete. The Up line (airport-bound) tracks should be ready by the end of Jan..
Metro Railway, which is implementing the city’s Yellow Line, aims to complete the second set of tracks by Jan, officials said. After both Up and Down tracks are completed, the Commissioner of Railway Safety (CRS), the autonomous body that grants the mandatory safety approval for revenue operations, will be invited for inspection. Metro Railway announced on Nov 27 that the city’s first airport link will be commissioned in Mar 2025 and trials would begin in Dec.
On Saturday, a rake (MR 407) rolled out of the Noapara station, which is a functioning station of the North-South corridor and is also equipped with a carshed and maintenance depot.
The train covered 7km, going up to the airport, creating history for the city’s Metro Railway network. Officials said the test run was done to check certain parameters – mainly the Down line’s track and third rail, which carries electricity to run the train. “The run was successful, without any infringement,” a metro spokesperson said.
Engineers and metro personnel are working round the clock to make the city’s “airport-metro” connectivity dream come true.
The 7km Noapara-airport (Jai Hind metro station) is Phase I of the Yellow Line, which will eventually link Barasat with Kolkata, covering 16 km. TOI reported on Monday that the country’s biggest underground metro facility, which includes a yard, is being readied below the airport.
Like Noapara, which has an interface between the North-South (Blue) and the Yellow lines, the airport or Jai Hind metro station too has an interchange between the Yellow and Orange (New Garia-Airport) lines.
