HYDERABAD: The Metro Rail operations on the 10-km stretch between Hitec City and Ameerpet would be opened for passenger operations on Wednesday. Governor ESL Narasimhan will flag off the Metro train at 9.15 a.m. at Ameerpet station. Regular train operations in this stretch will start from 4 pm the same day. This stretch will establish the crucial Metro Rail connectivity to the highly congested Hitec City, Madapur, Gachibowli and Jubilee Hills.
The event will be a low-key affair to be attended by only a few senior government officials and the Concessionaire L&TMRHL.
There are eight stations on the Ameerpet-Hitec City route, including Taruni-Madhura Nagar, Yousufguda, Jubilee Hills Road No.5, Jubilee Hills check-post, Peddammagudi, Madhapur, Durgam Cheruvu and Hitec City stations.
Taruni-Madhura Nagar station is being developed as a women managed station and in due course, it will have shops mostly catering to the needs of women and children.
The idea is to develop this station as well as the two acre space available below as a women-centric station, where all the shopping needs of women and children will be met at one Metro station, which is being attempted for the first time in the world.
Unlike other stations which are mainly two-level stations, Jubilee Hills check post station is a single-level station where concourse level is avoided so as to reduce the already high level of the station due to gradient related problems. As the entire stretch is traversing an undulated terrain and highly curvaceous road, construction of viaduct and the stations posed several technical challenges, HMRL Managing Director NVS Reddy said.
Construction of reverse facility beyond Hitec City station in front of Cyber Towers and Trident hotel is being done in a staggered and sequential manner as the narrow passage is wedged between Cyber Towers on one side and flyover on the other side and it will take a couple of months for completion, L&TMRHL Managing Director, KVB Reddy said.
Trains will initially run in a 5 km stretch between Jubilee Hills check post and Hitec City station in traditional railway practice of “twin single line method”.
In this method the two tracks are treated as two separate single lines and trains are operated in both “up and down” direction on each line separately, till the “reversal” beyond Hitec City station is completed. Accordingly, initially the frequency of trains between Ameerpet-Hitec City will be 9 to 12 minutes, as against 6 minutes frequency in other parts of the presently operational Metro corridors.
In view of the ‘twin single line method’ of operation and the need to increase frequency despite ‘speed restrictions’ on a Metro stretch with many steep curves, initially three stations (Juibilee Hills Check Post, Peddammagudi and Madhapur) will not be opened for public at this stage.