NCRTC commences tunneling work for India’s first regional rail corridor at Anand Vihar

The 17 km priority section between Sahibabad to Duhai is scheduled to be operational by March 2023 and trial runs are expected to begin this year. The complete corridor will be opened to the public by 2025.

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DELHI (Metro Rail News): Tunneling work for underground construction of India’s first regional rail corridor being implemented from Delhi to Ghaziabad and Meerut has been commenced at Anand Vihar on 3rd March 2022.

In this process, about 90 meters long, Tunnel Boring Machine (TBM) has started constructing a tunnel for India’s first RRTS corridor from Anand Vihar towards New Ashok Nagar side. The TBM consists of a cutter head, front shield, middle shield, tail shield, erector, screw conveyer, and many other parts that help in boring the tunnels efficiently.

Tunnel rings are being constructed with the help of tunnel segments by the TBM. Normally seven tunnel segments are used to make a tunnel ring. Tunnel segments for this section are being constructed at the Casting yard of NCRTC with precision and quality control. With a 6.6 m diameter, the RRTS tunnels are bigger as compared to that of the other Metro systems in the country due to larger rolling stock with a higher design speed of 180 Kmph RRTS trains. It will help in reducing the air pressure and discomfort to passengers due to the higher speed of the trains.

The tunnel of 6.5-meter diameter is being constructed for the first time in India in a mass transit project. This particular TBM will build around 3km of the tunnel from Anand Vihar towards the New Ashok Nagar side. The retrieving shaft for this TBM is currently under construction at Khichripur near New Ashok Nagar.

Four TBMs are to be launched from Anand Vihar station. Two for a drive from Anand Vihar towards New Ashok Nagar side and two for a drive from Anand Vihar towards Sahibabad side. The construction of other launching shafts for TBM launching towards the Sahibabad side is underway at the north side of Anand Vihar. The TBMs from Anand Vihar to Sahibabad will construct around 2 km of tunnels each. The retrieving shaft of the same is under construction at Vaishali near Sahibabad.

The underground stretches of RRTS will have twin separate tunnels for the to and fro movement of the trains. To ensure the safety of the commuters’ various safety measures is being implemented. There are provisions of emergency escapes for commuters’ safety in case of any emergency. It will also have a cross-passage at around every 250 m.

There will be provision for ventilation shafts for infusing air into the tunnel and will also have a side walkway of width 60 cm-90 cm to support maintenance activities and will function as an added emergency escape. The design lives of the tunnels are planned and expected to be 100 years.

Decongestion of the National Capital, reducing vehicular traffic & air pollution, and balanced regional development are some of the reasons behind project implementation. NCRTC is adopting cutting-edge technology to ensure safe and timely completion of the works while minimizing inconvenience to the road users, local passer-by, business owners, and residents along the entire stretch. One of the techniques being used extensively for the project is pre-casting of various civil structures and reducing site construction at the site.

Construction work on the entire 82 Km long Delhi-Ghaziabad Meerut RRTS corridor is in full swing. The corridor will have 25 stations, including two depots and one stabling yard. More than 14,000 workers and 1100 engineers are working day and night at our sites. Despite the challenges brought in by the COVID-19 pandemic, the progress of the project has been as per scheduled timelines. So far, an 18 km viaduct of priority section with around 1400 piers has been constructed. Foundation work has been completed for 80% of the corridor.

The 17 km priority section between Sahibabad to Duhai is scheduled to be operational by March 2023 and trial runs are expected to begin this year. The complete corridor will be opened to the public by 2025.

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