ProUI

BANGALORE: Bangalore Metro Rail Corporation (BMRC) might still be stuck with the pre-feasibility study on extending the Metro till Bengaluru International Airport (BIA). But the BIA has already chalked out an elaborate plan to welcome the Metro right at its front door. The BIA will accommodate the upcoming 'High Speed Metro Connectivity' near the terminal, as part of its Phase II expansion plan. The BIA authority, in its Environment Impact Assessment (EIA) for Phase II submitted to the state government recently, said the Metro line would enter the airport from the west and run in the vicinity of the main access roadway. The EIA will be followed with a public hearing, after which it will get final approval.

The current plan for the Metro station assumes that underground walkways will connect the station to Terminal 1, and one underground station will be located within the terminal area and serve both the existing and upcoming terminals, the report said.

A senior BIA official said Metro connectivity till the heart of the terminal means passengers from the city can just hop off the Metro and board their flight after going through the security checks. "A state-of-the-art baggage tunnel (from Metro station to terminal) will assist passengers in easy boarding," he added.

Roads to the airport

A copy of the EIA report, available with TOI, says there are plans to improve road connectivity to BIA.

* Currently, NH-7 (Bellary Road) is the single major arterial road providing access to BIA-bound traffic

* Envisages two more access roads - a six-lane divided road from the Southwest and another from SH-104 on the East

* The new roads will cater to eastern section of BIA, comprising cargo, MRO and proposed commercial development

Not just an airport

Phase II expansion comes with a number of non-aeronautical development activities spread over 1,011 acres. It will include amenities like hospitality, entertainment, healthcare, business park, institutional, recreation and commercial facilities, convention centre etc. The proposed non-aeronautical development will support and complement aviation operations.

New-look terminal 1 by October

In 2010, BIAL started augmentation of the existing infrastructure to enhance passenger handling capacity from the existing 11.4 Million Passengers Per Annum (MPPA) to 17.2 MPPA.

A BIAL spokesperson said Terminal 1 (T1) would be open to passengers in a phased manner from October. The highlight of the expansion would be Airport Operational Control Centre, which acts as a nerve centre in monitoring airport activities on a real-time wall monitor. T1 expansion comes with additional check-in counters for passengers, seating capacity and other amenities on a floor area almost double the existing one.

Bigger, better BIA

* After expansion, BIA will cater to 55 million passengers per annum and about 1 million tonne of cargo by 2029-2030

* A new south parallel runway -- 4,000m long and 60m wide -- will support Code F aircraft and be CAT IIIB compliant to operate in low-visibility conditions

* Terminal 2 to accommodate domestic and international network airlines with a space of 3,65,500 sqm dedicated to passenger facilities

NEW DELHI: Delhi Metro has recorded highest ridership at 24.09 lakhs, almost one lakh increase in a month.The ridership recorded yesterday was 24.09 lakhs as against previous highest ridership recorded at 23.79 lakhs on July 1, 2013.

NEW DELHI: Almost a month after taking over the Delhi Airport Metro Express corridor, DMRC is looking to provide better services on the line. From August 1, trains on the Airport link will run at shorter intervals and move faster earlier in the day. The Delhi Metro Rail Corporation announced on Tuesday that the train service from both the terminal stations of the Airport link—New Delhi and Sector 21 of Dwarka--will start at 4.45am instead of 5.30am and 5.15am at the two respective stations. The timings for the last train will not change; trains will leave from the New Delhi station at 11.30pm and from Dwarka, Sector 21, at 11.15pm.

"The change in schedule will be a great help to Shatabdi passengers, who depart early in the morning and return late in the night," said DMRC spokesman Anuj Dayal. The Shatabdi passengers coming from the airport or nearby areas will be able to board a Metro from the Airport link early morning and get to the railway station. "All Shatabdi trains arrive in New Delhi latest by 11.05pm. The Airport Express services will be available for 15 more minutes—up to 11.45pm—at the most, in case of delays," Dayal added.

The frequency will be increased during peak hours—10 minutes and 30 seconds instead of 15 minutes. In the remaining hours, trains will operate every 15 minutes. The daily trips will increase to 180 from 146. The morning peak hours are from 7.30am to noon, while the evening peak hours are from 3pm to 7.30pm. The peak hours are in sync with timings of flight arrival and departure at Terminal 3.

The operating speed on the Airport line will also be increased to 80kmph from 70kmph. "The changes have been made after taking feedback from commuters. After taking over the operations of the line from the July 1, DMRC sought feedback to improve the quality of the services," Dayal said.

MADRID: A Spanish court says "black box" data recorders show that a train conductor was on the phone and traveling at 95 mph (153 kph), almost twice the speed limit, when the vehicle derailed, killing 79 people.Investigators say the train had been going as fast as 119 mph (192 kph) shortly before the derailment and that the conductor activated the brakes "seconds before the crash."In a statement, the court said Tuesday that the conductor was talking on the phone to an official of national rail company Renfe when the crash happened and apparently was consulting a paper document at the time.The conductor, Francisco Jose Garzon Amo, has been provisionally charged with multiple counts of negligent homicide.

Located at a height of 20m, the Mayur Vihar station of the Mukundpur-Shiv Vihar line will be only the second green station of the Delhi Metro network. Yet, it’s neither the height nor the green certification that makes the station unique. According to the Delhi Metro Rail Corporation (DMRC), construction of the station is the biggest challenge due to space crunch.
    “The station will come up on the approach road next to the existing Mayur Vihar Extension station on the Dwarka-Noida line. There is space crunch—so much so that even the ancillary buildings will be away from the station, in a neighbouring MCD park. There is only space to build a station on Khudiram Bose Road,” said a Delhi Metro official.
    To build the station, DMRC will use the cantilever technology, generally used for elevated viaducts or corridors. The station will stand on three columns ranged along the middle, with two arms of the columns holding up the rectangular-shaped station. These three columns will be built along the central verge of the road, and connected to the existing station through a foot overbridge. The station, which will be a LEED-certified building, will cross the Blue corridor (Dwarka-Noida) from the top after spanning the Yamuna.
    The Mayur Vihar station of Line 7 (Mukundpur-Shiv Vihar corridor) is not the only station to be coming up on a narrow strip of road. Further down in the same alignment, the station at Vinod Nagar will be equally challenging for Metro engineers. Surrounded by a petrol pump, BSES office, a fire station as well as several apartment blocks, the Vinod Nagar station is just 35ft from two residential complexes— Ras Vihar and Technology Apartments—located right opposite it.
    “The station will be much narrower than any other station in the Delhi Metro network. The station has been designed so that Narwana Road doesn’t get narrower after the construction, as well as to protect the privacy of the apartments,” said the Delhi Metro official. At only 29m wide and 140m long, the Vinod Nagar station will be 12m high—approximately the height of a four-storey building.
    The stretch from Mayur Vihar to Karkardooma—being treated as one “package” by DMRC—has many twists and turns. The alignment, which goes from Mayur Vihar to Trilokpuri and then to East Vinod Nagar, will then cross NH-24 and take a sharp turn from Vinod Nagar towards Jogger’s Park, located next to a block of apartments starting with Panch Mahal Apartments.
    According to DMRC, the turn had to be taken to not demolish the existing apartments. “But since we cannot take a turn less than 200m, we had to go through Jogger’s Park to reach IP Extension station, which will be located near National Victor School,” added the official.
    The alignment then passes by Patparganj I n d u s t r i a l A re a a n d crosses over to pass in front of the EDM mall on Chaudhary Charan Singh Marg before reaching Anand Vihar station to connect with the existing station.
    “We had to ensure that the alignment doesn’t go into Uttar Pradesh as it would have entailed getting a separate set of per missions from another government,” said the DMRC official.

VARANASI: Despite tall claims made about catering heavy rush of passengers at Cantonment Railway Station in view of first Monday of Shrawan, negligence was prevailing in the station premises on Monday.

While heap of garbage dumped opposite the railway station premises welcomed devotees and Kanwariyas in the city, the situation inside the station premises was no different. The railway tracks were littered with solid waste across length of the platform. The condition near the public convenience also remains the worst. The condition of waiting area behind the food plaza also gives a picturesque of the poor sanitary conditions in the station premises.

Passengers who had assembled in the waiting hall at platform number 5 complained about the unavailability of water in toilets and wash rooms. This led to a state of uncomfortable for many passengers. According to Ranjeet, who looks after the public convenience at platform number one, no extra arrangement for cleanliness was made for washrooms keeping in view the extra rush on Monday.

At the same time, as waiting hall at platform one was not properly cleaned, pilgrims and devotees who had arrived in the city from far-away places had assembled in the main hall and platform number one of the station and preferred sitting on their luggage and mattresses on the floor.

New Delhi: In a setback to Udhampur-Katra rail link project, the work on the 25-km-long stretch has been slowed down after the unrest in Jammu and Kashmir over the BSF firing incident at Ramban.

The Katra line was expected to be operational by the end of August as work was going on full throttle. But now it is further delayed and likely to be commissioned in October this year.

"The workforce involved in laying the tracks between Udhampur and Katra, part of the Kashmir rail link project, had fled after the turmoil in the state due to the firing incident and it has affected the progress of the ongoing work," a senior Northern Railway official involved in the project said.



He said majority of the skilled workforce were from outside of the state including Jharkhand, West Bengal and Bihar.

Though the work has been resumed in the section, the pace is slow as all the workers have not yet returned, the official said.

The ballast-less track is being laid on the Udhampur-Katra section which involves about 11 km of tunnelling, nine major bridges, 29 minor bridges and 10 rail overbids/rail under-bridges.

Trial run will be conducted on the route after the completion of laying the track and the Commissioner Railway Safety will inspect the line before giving the clearance.

We are trying to make the line operational before the commencement of Navaratri, official said.

All the tunnelling as well as bridge works have been completed.

SURAT: Next time you are at the railway station, think twice before spitting and littering the platforms. Chances are that you may end up paying a fine up to Rs 500 to the railway squad.Authorities at Surat railway station have launched a cleanliness drive to keep the platforms and railway tracks clean. In the last two days, more than 40 persons have been fined for littering and spitting on the platforms and subways. The railways have collected Rs 20,000 from the offenders.Officials have appealed to the passengers and visitors at the station not to throw wrappers, plastic bags and garbage on platforms. The railways can also fine people found washing clothes at water pipes and basins. Passengers are expected to make use of dustbins and help the administration to keep the station premises clean.Raees Mirza, area manager of Surat railway station told TOI, "It is an offence to spit and litter the railway premises including platforms, trains and tracks. The provision of fine has been there but it was not implemented properly. The situation warrants its strict implementation. Our staff including ticket checkers is catching the offenders."

He further said that beggars are a big nuisance in the railway premises. "We are seeking the help of NGOs to help us remove the beggar from the platforms and the subways," he added.

ROHTAK: The bi-weekly Shatabdi train between Ludhiana and Delhi will run seven days a week, Railway Minister Mallikarjun Kharge said here today.The express train will also have a stoppage at Jind in Haryana, the Union minister told reporters here.Kharge was here to lay foundation for Rs 181 crore Rohtak Railway bypass line.The bypass would replace the old Rohtak-Gohana rail track starting from the railway station upto Makrauli Kalan village in the district.The bypass would ease the traffic jams in the city. The Minister said that with the shifting of this line, a third Rohtak-Samargopalpur line will be available which will facilitate straight route to Panipat."This will help the development of Rohtak city, because the earlier Rohtak-Makrauli line will be eliminated," Kharge said.He appreciated the progress made by Haryana and said the state is producing sufficient foodgrains and "adequate railway network is required for its transporting."He also thanked UPA chairperson Sonia Gandhi and Prime Minister Manmohan Singh for entrusting him with the responsibility of Railway ministry and said that efforts are being made to improve the facilities for commuters.Road minister Oscar Fernandes, Haryana Chief Minister Bhupinder Singh Hooda, Rajya Sabha MP Shadilal Batra, Rohtak MP Deepender Hooda and Railway Board Chairman Arunendra Kumar were present at the occasion.

Hooda said, "in 1957, Rohtak-Panipat railway line was provided with the efforts of his father late Ranbir Singh and at that time Hanumantaya was the Railway Minister".

"34 years back, Rohtak-Bhiwani railway line was constructed when Bansi Lal was the Chief Minister and after that no other rail project was considered for Haryana," the Chief Minister said.

"Rohtak-Jhajjar-Rewari railway line was sanctioned in 1997, when I was MP. This railway line is operational now. The work of Sonipat-Gohana-Jind railway line is in progress," he said.

South Central Railway has communicated this Railway that they have augmented Train Nos. 17209/17210 KAKINADA TOWN-BANGALORE CITY-KAKINADA TOWN EXPRESS with o­nEadditionalAC 3-Tiercoach o­n temporary measure for clearance of extra rushfrom 25thto 31stJuly, 2013, as per the following details:--
Train N0.17209 KAKINADA TOWN-BANGALORE CITY EXPRESS runs with o­nE additional AC 3-tier coach temporarily from KAKINADA endfrom 24th to 31st July, 2013 and in the return direction, Train No. 17210 BANGALORE CITY-KAKINADA TOWN EXPRESS runs with o­nE additional AC 3-tier coach temporarily from BANGALORE CITY end from 25th to31st July, 2013.
The revised composition is total : 19 coaches (instead of 18 coaches), consisting of Three AC 3-tier coaches, Two AC 2-tier coaches, Nine Second Class Sleeper Coaches, Three General Second Class coaches and Two Second Class luggage-cum-brake vans.
PERMANENT AUGMENTATION OF CHAMUNDI EXPRESS WITH 02 GENERALSECOND CLASS CHAIR CARDS WITH IMMEDIATE EFFECT :--
South Western Railway has decided to attach 02 additional General Second Class Chair Cars permanentlybyTrain Nos. 16215/16216 MYSORE-BANGALORE-MYSORE CHAMUNDI EXPRESS with immediate effect.
The revised composition is total : 20 coaches (instead of 18 coaches), consisting of One AC Chair Car, Seventeen General Second Class (sitting) Cars & o­ne General Second Classluggage-cum-disabled coach.
WITHDRAWAL OF o­nE GENERAL SECOND CLASS COACH FROM TRAIN Nos. 12607/12607 CHENNAI-BANGALORE CITY-CHENNAI LALBAGH EXPRESS & TRAIN Nos. 12609/12610 CHENNAI-BANGALORE CITY-CHENNAI EXPRESS WITH EFFECT FROM 01ST AUGUST, 2013:

One General Second Class will be withdrawn temporarilyfrom the existing composition of Train Nos. 12607/12608 CHENNAI-BANGALORE CITY-CHENNAI LALBAGH EXPRESSand TRAIN NOs. 12609/12610 CHENNAI-BANGALORE CITY-CHENNAI EXPRESS to facilitate maintenance at Pit line No.2 at Bangalore City Station, duly making the composition from 21 to 20 coaches., with effect from 01st August, 2013.
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