The National Capital Region Transport Corporation (NCRTC) achieved its first tunnel breakthrough of the Delhi section on the Delhi-Meerut RRTS route, India's first rapid rail project. The Directors, senior officials of the NCRTC and contractors were present on the occasion.
The first TBM of the Delhi section, ‘Sudarshan 4.1’, was lowered at Anand Vihar launching shaft in January 2022 for the construction of RRTS tunnels between Anand Vihar and Khichdipur. This RRTS tunnel is the longest tunnel in Delhi made by any Tunnel Boring Machine and is about 3 km long
“RRTS is aimed to ease regional mobility thereby reducing vehicular congestion & lowering air pollution. Multimodal integration has been one important consideration while planning & implementing it. I am confident that it will enhance quality of life in NCR,” said Secretary MoHUA said.
“I compliment the engineers of NCRTC as well as our construction partner for completing this section of tunnelling which was a complex & challenging task. Going towards New Ashok Nagar, it has negotiated very close to existing metro station piling structures..." an official said.
"..in addition to foundations of expressways & non-engineered buildings in Patparganj & Khichdipur. NCRTC has prioritized commuters’ convenience over ease of construction. Sarai Kale Khan and Anand Vihar RRTS station are examples of extensive multi-modal integration...” the official added.
The 3-km tunnel is the longest in Delhi made by any tunnel-boring machine and its construction started in January 2022. More than 14,000 high-precision pre-casted tunnel segments have been used to ensure a long tunnel life, the National Capital Region Transport Corporation (NCRTC) said in a statement.
Four tunnels are being constructed in Delhi for the 82-kilometre Delhi-Ghaziabad-Meerut Regional Rapid Transit System (RRTS) for movement in both directions.
NCRTC said two parallel tunnels of about 3 km are being constructed between Anand Vihar and Khichdipur towards New Ashok Nagar RRTS station. Another set of parallel tunnels of about 2 km are being constructed between Anand Vihar and Vaishali towards Sahibabad RRTS station.
The RRTS tunnels have a diameter of 6.5 metres, which is highly optimised when compared to global benchmarks of tunnels for a similar design speed of 180 kmph, with wider and higher rolling stock.
"NCRTC today achieved its first tunnel breakthrough for the Delhi section of the Delhi-Ghaziabad-Meerut RRTS corridor," NCRTC said.
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