NCRTC plans freight trains on Delhi-Ghaziabad-Meerut RRTS route

The National Capital Region Transport Corporation (NCRTC), which has undertaken the Regional Rapid Transit System (RRTS) project, is planning to run dedicated trains for commercial services between the NCR cities, sources said on Friday. Officials also said that a detailed plan is being conceptualised for the purpose.

The 82-kilometre-long RRTS project will connect Delhi, Ghaziabad and Meerut with high-speed state-of-the-art trains with a design speed of 180 kilometres per hour (kmph). The project is pegged at 30,274 crore and a 17-km section connecting Sahibabad and Duhai, will be the first RRTS stretch in the country and is going to be operational by March 2023.

The entire 82-km route is expected to be commissioned in March 2025. The route will have three depots at Jangpura in Delhi, Duhai in Ghaziabad and Modipuram in Meerut and these will help in the movement of goods while serving as pick-up and drop points for the commercial trains, officials said.

The 82-km route will consist of 25 stations in the three cities of Delhi, Ghaziabad and Meerut.

“The NCRTC has plans to run commercial trains on the network which is proposed to connect different cities in the NCR. This is our future vision. Once the plan is put in place, it will help in the fast movement of goods and services with the help of dedicated trains which will be run during off-peak hours. These trains will be dedicated ones and will not be meant for passengers,” said Puneet Vats, NCRTC chief public relations officer (PRO).

Overall, there will be eight RRTS corridors and these include Delhi-Meerut, Delhi-Alwar, Delhi-Panipat, Delhi-Palwal, Delhi-Khurja, Delhi-Rohtak, Delhi-Hapur and Delhi-Baraut.

“The commercial operations will immensely reduce the dependency on truck operators and this will considerably help in reducing pollution in the NCR. The commercial trains will also help in the optimum utilisation of the RRTS network,” Vats added.

According to official estimates, the RRTS project will reduce carbon emissions by taking around 150,000 private vehicles off the road on a daily basis. It is estimated to increase the share in public transport from about 37% to 63%.

The entire rolling stock meant for passenger services for the Delhi-Ghaziabad-Meerut RRTS corridor is getting manufactured at the Savli plant in Gujarat under the ‘Make in India’ initiative.

The NCRTC has proposed 30 trains of six coaches each, besides 10 trains with three coaches each, which will serve as a local Metro rail transit module in Meerut.