PUNE (Metro Rail News): Erection of first ever segment for the much-awaited Pune Metro Line 3, popularly known as ‘Puneri Metro” was held on Friday, 22 July 2022 at Hinjawadi at the hands of Dr. Suhas Diwase, Commissioner, Pune Metropolitan Region Development Authority (PMRDA). Alok Kapoor, Chief Executive Officer of Pune IT City Metro Rail Ltd. (PITCMRL), Neha Pandit, Director PITCMRL, Vivek Kharwadkar, Chief Engineer PMRDA, Rinaj Pathan, Superintending Engineer PMRDA, Bharatkumar Baviskar, Superintending Engineer PMRDA, many other officers of PITCMRL, PMRDA and Tata Group were present at the occasion.
The segment weighing 46 tonnes lifted and erected at 11 meters high between proposed stations no. 01 and 02 will give a further boost to the rapidly ongoing work of 23km elevated Hinjewadi-Shivajinagar Pune Metro Line 3.
Commenting on the occasion, Dr. Suhas Diwase, Commissioner PMRDA said, “The PMRDA awarded Pune Metro Line III project is making steady progress. An important milestone of launching the first segment was achieved and we are confident of maintaining momentum for timely completion of the project.”
“The casting of the segment is done at the casting yard situated at Tathwade and the length of the segment is around 3.6m and the weight is around 46 tonne. Around 10-12 such segments are used between two pillars. While the piling work too is being carried out; work at the casting yard is on full swing and keeping the required number of segments ready which, we will later assemble on the route, where the work has already commenced,” Mr. Alok Kapoor, CEO of Pune IT City Metro Rail Ltd. Said.
What is Segment Casting?
The segment is a crucial component of the Metro rail, as it acts as a base for rail track. Each segment is cast next to the previous segment in a special adjustable casting machine. This ensures that the interface between the two segments matches exactly when erected. Each successive segment is then cast next to the previous one. It is a sort of a bridge built in short sections (called segments), i.e., one piece at a time. A precast segment is constructed from pre-stressed concrete and the final form of the structure is then positioned where it has to be used.
The Pune Metro line III is a ~23 Km elevated Metro rail project connecting the IT hub of Hinjawadi to the Central business district of Shivajinagar. It is a Public Private Partnership (PPP) project awarded by the Pune Metropolitan Region Development Authority (PMRDA) to a consortium consisting of Tata Group’s TRIL Urban Transport Private Limited (TUTPL) and Siemens Project Ventures GmbH. The Project would be developed & operated on Design, build, finance, operate & transfer (DBFOT) basis by a special purpose vehicle (SPV), Pune IT City Metro Rail Limited or PITCMRL for a Concession Period of 35 years including the construction period.
