The Bangalore Metro Rail Corporation Limited (BMRCL) is making considerable progress at the crucial Peenya Depot, which will house the back-up control centre (BCC) supplementing the Integrated Operation Control Centre (OCC) for Phase-1 on Namma Metro.
In its latest newsletter, BMRCL has said it has completed track linking (ballasted track) for about 11,830 track metre out of the 11,980 track metre. “...Fixing of third rail is completed on both the Up and Down lines,” the newsletter read.
The Peenya Depot is an integral part of the Namma Metro’s Green Line (North-South Corridor) which will have 25 stations.
BMRCL, which had begun the full-speed trials from Peenya to Srirampuram station on Reach-3, is also busy giving finishing touches to stations and obtaining other clearances on Reach-3 and 3A.
Next in line
The 9.9-km Reach 3 and 3-A (Swastik and Peenya) on Phase-I is scheduled for commissioning next. And the Corporation has already missed several deadlines it had set for itself.
While the full-speed trials is something BMRCL can conduct, it still awaits certain essential clearances from the Indian Railways.
The Corporation will have to obtain clearance of the schedule of dimensions (SOD), which had resulted in a considerable delay in the commissioning of Namma Metro’s Reach-1 (Baiyappanahalli-MG Road) in 2011.
Clearance
And, according to BMRCL, the height of walkway from the rail level (minimum and maximum) and the exemption from provision of check rails in the Peenya Depot are two clearances on the SOD it is awaiting on the stretch.
These clearances are essential to approach the Research Design and Standards Organisation (RDSO) to issue the order conducting of the oscillation trials, which is a critical procedure in the certification process, which will allow BMRCL to commercially operate the trains.
Overall, the Corporation will have to test the trains for 750-km, and sources said that the speed that has been achieved during the trials has touched 85 kmph. However, Railways will fix the speed limit at which trains can be operated on the stretch commercially, just as in the case of Reach-1.