Initially, the plan was to inaugurate the corridor in two phases, however, opening only a part of the corridor would not attract enough ridership, so BMRCL has now decided to open the entire section simultaneously.
Following delays in obtaining rolling stock previously, the first two sets of 6-coach trains will arrive in the city from China by August 2023, and additional train sets will begin arriving from September onwards from the Kolkata-based Titagarh Wagons.
The entire 19-km Yellow Line stretch of Namma Metro Network is likely to be operational by December 2023, deviating from its earlier plan for a phase wise opening, reports Money Control.
Anjum Parwez, Bangalore Metro Rail Corporation Limited (BMRCL) managing director stated that the complete RV Road – Bommasandra section will be opened for commercial service in one go.
This decision has been made even though a majority of the construction work between Bommasandra and the Central Silk Board has reached advanced stage.
Initially, the plan was to inaugurate the corridor in two phases:
In June 2023, the first phase of the yellow line of the Namma Metro was expected to begin operating from Bommasandra to Central Silk Board.
Further, phase-2 opening of the Central Silk Board to RV Road was planned by December 2023, according to BMRCL officials.
Parwez said, “Opening only a part of the corridor would not attract enough ridership, so we have now decided to open the entire section simultaneously.”
The metro network expansion in this area will bring substantial benefits to numerous commuters — specifically those in the tech industry who travel daily to and from Electronics City.
As per original plans, the completion of the entire yellow line was scheduled for 2021, but the deadline was subsequently extended to December 2022.
Additionally, due to delays in obtaining rolling stock from the contractor, there was uncertainty regarding whether the first section would be ready for operation by June 2023.
Tracking Delay Of Rolling Stock For The Corridor
As per the report, regarding the progress on coaches supplied by China’s CRCC, Parvez stated. “The first two sets of 6-coach trains will arrive in the city from China by August 2023, and additional train sets will begin arriving from September onwards from the Kolkata-based Titagarh Wagons.”
In December 2019, the BMRCL awarded a contract for supplying 126 metro coaches to Chinese firm CRRC Nanjing Puzhen Co Ltd, a subsidiary of CRRC Corporation Ltd.
The Chinese firm won the Rs 1,578 crore contract that included the supply of 126 cars with distance-to-go (DTG) technology and 90 cars with communication-based train control (CBTC) technology.
As per the terms of the contract, the supplier had to commit to either setting up a new factory in India to produce the cars or strike a partnership with a domestic manufacturer to ensure timely delivery.
CRCC unveiled plans to manufacture 204 coaches in Sri City, Andhra Pradesh. But the plans did not materialise.
Following this, in April 2022, BMRCL floated a tender to supply 72 coaches as a contingency measure after the original contract awarded to a Chinese firm ran into rough weather.
While in July 2022, BMRCL announced that it had accepted CRRC’s request to manufacture a total of 216 metro train coaches in partnership with Titagarh Wagons in Kolkata.