 "Delhi-Meerut RRTS now operational till Modi Nagar North, adds 17 km stretch")
Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Wednesday flagged off the Namo Bharat train service between Duhai to Modi Nagar North, opening up the second 17-kilometre (km) stretch of the ambitious rapid rail plan to connect Meerut to the national capital.
“With this, an additional 17 km stretch from Duhai to Modi Nagar North on the Delhi – Ghaziabad – Meerut Regional Rapid Transit System (RRTS) corridor, beyond the operational priority section, is ready for operations. This extension encompasses three stations: Muradnagar, Modi Nagar South, and Modi Nagar North. With the inauguration of this additional 17 km section, Namo Bharat services will be seamlessly available on 34 km of the Delhi - Meerut RRTS corridor, incorporating eight stations from Sahibabad to Modinagar North,” the National Capital Region Transport Corporation (NCRTC) said.
With train sets having a design speed of 180 kilometres per hour (kmph) and an operational speed of up to 160 kmph, the Rs 30,274 crore corridor is likely to be completed in 2025 and will connect Uttar Pradesh’s Meerut to Sarai Kale Khan in New Delhi.
The service will start Friday onwards and will run between Sahibabad, which was inaugurated in October 2023, and Modi Nagar North.
“The train service will be available for commuters from 06:00 am to 8:00 pm for the entire section from Sahibabad to Modinagar North. The first train in both directions will commence operations at 06:00 am, and the last train will depart from the terminal stations at 8:00 pm,” NCRTC said.
The Delhi-Ghaziabad-Meerut RRTS corridor, stretching over 82 km, will shrink travel time between Delhi and Meerut to less than an hour, according to the Centre.
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The transport corporation aims to continue opening small sub-sections of the corridor spaced out in a few months of each other going forward.
The service is expected to decongest roadways between the two cities and also allow for urban expansion around the national capital, under the transit-oriented development (TOD) policy of the government.