Bengaluru: Namma Metro's Yellow Line safety inspection from July 22 to 25

Bengaluru: The long-delayed Yellow Line has moved a step closer to reality, with its statutory safety inspection scheduled for next week, according to an official with direct knowledge of the matter. 

Commissioner of Metro Railway Safety (Southern Circle) AM Chowdhary will inspect the line from July 22 to 24, followed by a visit to the Operations Control Centre (OCC) at the Baiyappanahalli depot on July 25, the official told DH. 

A second official confirmed the plan. 

The inspection dates were finalised shortly after the BMRCL formally approached the CMRS on Friday. 

On Thursday evening, the BMRCL received the crucial Independent Safety Assessment (ISA) certification for train and signalling systems from Italian state-owned company Italcertifer. 

The BMRCL required the ISA to test safety parameters of the driverless trains that will run on the Yellow Line. 

The ISA report was delayed after Siemens India Limited-Siemens AG, the signalling contractor for the Yellow Line, detected glitches in software datasets that control all aspects of train movements. 

The CMRS typically takes about a week to give his report, which is almost always conditional. 

The BMRCL will need a few days to fulfill the conditions and then approach the state for permission to open the line. The state is also required to seek approval from the Centre. 

The BMRCL plans to operationalise the line with three trains and a 25-minute frequency. 

BMRCL Managing Director M Maheshwar Rao announced in early July that the Yellow Line would open by August 15. 

The first official, speaking anonymously, explained that a fourth train was expected to be dispatched by Bengal-based rolling stock manufacturer Titagarh Rail Systems Limited (TRSL) by July-end. 

"All six coaches of this trainset have been formed and are undergoing testing. We expect them to be dispatched by the fourth week of July. We will get them by August 10," the official said. 

The train will undergo testing on the mainline for three weeks before it can be introduced into passenger service. It will help the BMRCL improve frequency on the Yellow Line to 20 minutes. 

TRSL is expected to supply two trains per month from September and all 15 by March 2026, as this newspaper reported recently. 

The 19-15-km RV Road-Bommasandra Yellow Line will bring metro to Electronics City and other parts of southern Bengaluru. It will also help decongest the notorious Silk Board Junction.