The upcoming Delhi-Panipat-Karnal and Delhi-Gurgaon-Bawal rapid rail corridors are estimated to take about two lakh vehicles off the road, states the proposed detailed project report (DPR).
The Delhi-Gurgaon-Bawal Namo Bharat corridor will pass through urbanised and industrial areas such as Gurgaon, Manesar, MBIR and Bawal, connecting the Delhi airport with the regional rapid transit system (RRTS) and increasing NCR productivity. With the other corridor, commuters will be able to travel from Delhi to Karnal in 90 minutes and from Kashmiri Gate to Murthal in just 30 minutes.
A 55km section of the 82km Delhi-Ghaziabad-Meerut corridor is already operational. Once the entire corridor is ready, it is estimated to increase the share of public transport usage along the stretch from 37 per cent to 63 per cent and help take more than one lakh private vehicles off the road, which will reduce 2,50,000 tonnes of carbon dioxide in vehicular emissions per year, said officials.
“Being a rail-based transit system, due to reduced friction owing to steel-to-steel rolling contact, Namo Bharat has 1/5th fossil fuel consumption compared with road vehicles. It serves as a green mode of transit in NCR,” said an official of National Capital Region Transport Corporation, which is executing the RRTS project. Most of the RRTS stations are also linked to nearby metro and railway stations for seamless connectivity.
The official added that the implementation of the project was part of a larger strategy to address issues of congestion and pollution in the region. It is part of Comprehensive Action Plan for Air Pollution Control in Delhi and NCR, and the recommendation of the high-powered committee on decongesting traffic in Delhi.
The Delhi-Gurgaon-Bawal corridor is proposed to be 92km long, with close to 22km in Delhi and around 71km in Haryana. It aims to cut travel time between Delhi and Bawal to about one hour, facilitating efficient movement for commuters and boosting regional economic activities. “It will encourage people to switch from road travel to the faster and more comfortable Namo Bharat trains. This shift will help save travel time, reduce road congestion and lower the damage caused to roads,” said the official.
Sprawled across 136km, about 100km of the Delhi-Panipat-Karnal Namo Bharat corridor is planned in Haryana while the other 36km is set to traverse through Delhi — from Sarai Kale Khan in Delhi to Karnal New ISBT in Karnal, Haryana, with 17 stations planned along the route. Apart from Sarai Kale Khan, five more stations will be in Delhi while 11 will be in Haryana. Two depots, one at Murthal and another at Ganjbar, will support the operations.
The corridor hosts major industrial and education hubs of Haryana, including Sonipat Education City, Kundli, Barhi Industrial Area, Panipat city, IOCL refinery and Karnal. “Lakhs of people travel here every day from across NCR, resulting in major traffic movement in the area. It is, thus, a witness to the daily peril of traffic jams and pollution. Stations are proposed at all such important centres along the Delhi-Panipat-Karnal corridor,” said the official.
Namo Bharat trains, with an average speed of 90kmph and making stoppages, will cover the distance in significantly less time than other available transport options, he added. “The corridor will not only cut down travel time but will also bring environmental and economic benefits to the entire region,” the official pointed out.
