Metro train chugs into Mysuru Road station

At long last, a Metro train chugged into the Mysuru Road station at 11 am on Friday amid lour cheers and thumbs-up from officials and workers of the Bangalore Metro Rail Corporation Ltd (BMRCL).

The trial run, originally scheduled for Thursday, was called off at the last minute due to a technical snag in computerised signalling on the line. The train had got stuck between Magadi Road and Vijayanagar stations, according to BMRCL Managing Director, Pradeep Singh Kharola.

The train hurtled at an average speed of 25 km per hour on the 6.4-km line (Reach 2) between Magadi Road and Mysuru Road stations. Over the next two months, many more trial runs will be conducted on the stretch at speeds as high as 80 km per hour. The Commissioner of Railway Safety (CRS) will then carry out another round of trial runs. Commercial operations on the line are expected by June, he explained.

Reach 2 connects Mysuru Road station, located at Nayandahalli Cross, with Deepanjali Nagar, Attiguppe, Vijayanagar, Hosahalli, Magadi Road and the City railway station (Majestic). Deen Dayalu, the loco pilot who steered the train, said he was confident about the trial run taking place on Friday.

Reach 4 by year-end

Trial runs on Reach 4, which will provide metro connectivity to the southern part of Bengaluru, may be conducted by September-October, Kharola said.

The line will connect KR Market with RV Road.

The BMRCL chief said that most of the works on the stretch had been completed and what remained were just finishing touches. Commercial operations on Reach 3B between Peenya Industry and Nagasandra would begin once the CRS completed the trial runs, he added.

Trains from the East-West (Purple) line could start chugging into Majestic, the interchange station, by November.