Don’t pinch your skin if the Metro train pulling into your station this December- end looks longer than usual. The Delhi Metro Rail Corporation (DMRC) is set to introduce six- coach trains before the New Year, a step it feels will solve the problem of overcrowding in trains with more and more people prefering to travel by the Metro.
Now, Metro trains have four coaches and often run overcrowded. One of the four coaches is reserved for women. DMRC officials said the Dwarka- Noida line would be the first route on which these trains would start running.Trials are already being carried out on the route at night.
A six- coach train would be able to carry 600 more passengers. A four- coach train carries 1,200 to 1,500 passengers. A six-coach train would carry 1,800 to 2,100 passengers. At present, DMRC runs 188 four-coach trains. By the end of 2011, the fleet will grow to 208 trains, of which 113 trains will be four-coach and 95 trains six-coach.
“Travelling in the Metro used to be pleasure when it started. But now you feel suffocated because of overcrowding. When we think trains, we usually think trains that are really long. It is high time Delhi Metro increases the length of its trains. The situation turns very ugly during boarding and while alighting,” Hardeep Singh of Rajouri Garden, who is a frequent Metro user, said.
Kunal Bhardwaj, who also travels by the Metro frequently, agreed and welcomed Metro’s decision to add more coaches. “The rush in the trains has gone out of control lately,” he said.
Metro officials said converting its four-coach trains to sixcoach ones was not as simple a task as it may seem. “ The process of converting a fourcoach train into a six- coach train involves technical expertise.
A team of seven- eight dedicated DMRC engineers takes charge of the new train and carries out several rounds of testing to make it ready for passenger service. “ The tests are done to ensure all safety and performance- related parameters have been met,” an official said.
Among the tests these trains will be subjected to are: Rolling stock tests: In this, tests are run on the brake and pneumatics system to see their compatibility for a six- coach train. The tests also check the integration of the two new coaches in the train that run on a computer- based network.
Apart from this, the passenger announcement and passenger information system- related software are also checked.
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