Infrastructure
Mumbai Metro (Wikimedia Commons)
The Mumbai Metropolitan Region Development Authority (MMRDA) has recently taken the decision to procure new signalling equipment and platform screen doors for the Metro 6 corridor, which will run between Swami Samarth Nagar-Jogeshwari-Vikhroli-Kanjurmarg.Lokhandwala to Vikhroli.
This decision comes as work on the project enters a crucial phase, following the resolution of the depot at Kanjurmarg.
About 65 per cent of the work on the corridor is now complete. MMRDA hopes to have the remaining civil work completed within the next 18 months with the state granting approval to build the facility.
The construction of the metro depot will potentially ensure the completion of the corridor.
A senior official from MMRDA commented on the decision to install new equipment, stating that the authority will soon place orders for the design, manufacture, supply and installation of the platform screen doors, telecommunications, signalling and train control for the corridor, reports Times Of India.
The new signalling equipment will also utilise a Continuous Automatic Train Control System based on the ‘Communication-based Train Control System’.
This system encompasses Automatic Train Protection, Automatic Train Operation and Automatic Train Supervision sub-systems and uses radio communication between trackside and train to improve overall safety and efficiency.
The overall Metro Line-6 is being developed at an estimated cost of Rs 6,700 crore, with a target to complete in the next couple of years.
The 15.31-km-long line will provide an important east-west connectivity stretch for suburban commuters.
The line will connect Vikhroli to Lokhandwala, crisscrossing over railway tracks along the way. This line is fully elevated and it connects Western Express and Eastern Express Highways.
The link will be integrated with four other metro routes. This includes the already operational lines of Mumbai Metro – Line 2A and Line-7.
Additionally, the network will be interconnected to the in-progress, fully underground Colaba-Bandra-SEEPZ Metro Line 3, and Line-4 connecting Wadala to Kasardavali.
The corridor represents an important part of Mumbai’s wider urban development plan, which aims to improve transport infrastructure across the city and make it more accessible to all.