BENGALURU: A rail fracture on one of the tracks running between Kengeri Bus Terminal and Kengeri on Metro’s Purple Line early on Thursday ensured major delays in journey for hundreds of commuters on the stretch between Mysore Road and Kengeri.
The stretch is relatively a new line with commercial operations launched on the 7.5-km line Mysore Road and Kengeri (extended Purple Line) only on August 30, 2021. A S Shankar, Executive Director, Operations and Maintenance, Bangalore Metro Rail Corporation Limited (BMRCL) told TNIE, “One of our drivers noticed something unusual on the tracks near Kengeri around 6.30 am and reported it to us. It was a crack he had detected on one track. Due to safety reasons, we decided to stop running of trains on one track and trains were run only on our second track every 25 to 30 minutes.”
Anjum Parwez, Managing Director, BMRCL said, “From 6.30 am and up to 12 noon, trains were run every 25 minutes only. Due to the single track for trains coming in both directions, there was a delayed run. There was no operation of trains in the regular 5 minute or 10 minute frequency that we usually do. Public were inconvenienced and had to wait longer for their trains,” he said.
BMRCL restored the track temporarily and resumed operations on both tracks by noon. “The permanent restoration will take place tonight (Thursday) or tomorrow (Friday) night. We did not want to affect operations and so we made a temporary restoration. At no point of time were train operations completely suspended,” he stressed.
“Since the problem was between Kengeri Bus Terminal and Kengeri, we ran trains even up to Jnanabharathi (two stop before Kengeri Bus Terminal) and brought them back,” the MD said.Chief Public Relations Officer, BMRCL, B L Yashvanth Chavan said, “The tracks were restored using temporary plates. It is a rail fracture and is a rare occurrence. We are investigating into the reasons behind it,” Chavan added.