NEW DELHI: In a major boost to transport infrastructure in the Delhi-NCR region, PM Narendra Modi laid the foundation stone for the construction of India’s first regional rail line between Delhi, Ghaziabad, Meerut and Meerut Metro at Sikandarpur, Ghaziabad.
The RRTS corridor is being built at a cost of Rs 30,274 crore, and is planned to be operationalised by 2024.
“This will the first RRTS project, built at a cost of Rs 30,000 crore. Rapid rail and metro, both will be running on this corridor in Meerut. Once this is completed, the Delhi-Meerut journey will be covered in less than an hour,” Modi said
The regional rail line will bring relief from the road congestion and pollution faced by commuters travelling between Delhi and Meerut. It will cover the 82km distance in less than 60 minutes. It will offer high-speed, high-frequency, safe, reliable, comfortable and green public transit.
The operating speed of RRTS would be 160kmph and the average speed 100kmph. The frequency of the trains would be 5-10 minutes and there would be an RRTS station at every five to ten km.
The RRTS will pass through some of the most densely populated sections in Delhi and Meerut. Starting from Sarai Kale Khan in Delhi, it will go up to Modipuram in Meerut, joining urban clusters such as Anand Vihar in Delhi, Sahibabad, Ghaziabad, Muradnagar and Modinagar in UP. Two other RRTS projects planned are Delhi-Gurugram-SNB-Alwar and Delhi-Panipat.