The tunneling and construction work at Anand Vihar, which is one of the largest stations on the Delhi-Ghaziabad-Meerut corridor of RRTS project, is progressing rapidly. RRTS has completed the construction of the base slab and concourse level of Anand Vihar Station while the work on platform level is nearing completion. Presently, the roof of the Concourse level is being constructed. After this, the tracklaying work at the platform level will commence. RRTS Anand Vihar station is being constructed by using a top-down method. The ground level is getting constructed first and then the work progresses to the underground level. The RRTS station here is being constructed by using a cut-and-cover method. The side walls are constructed first which are around 3-feet wide. Temporary Iron columns are placed. Top slab is constructed first and a small outlet is opened through which excavator machines descend and take the soil out. Permanent columns then replace the temporary ones. Raft and rest of the construction takes place after that. The whole construction work remains underground without disrupting anything else. The lowest floor of the station, which is not for public use, will be utilised for servicing and drainage purposes.

The tunneling work is being done by the Tunnel Boring Machines called Sudarshan. The Sudarshan TBM is about 90 meters long and consists of Cutter Head, Front Shield, Middle Shield, Tail Shield, Erector, Screw Conveyor, and many other important parts. Total Length of the up and down tunnels is approximately 10 kms. Four Sudarshan machines are being deployed at the Anand Vihar RRTS station. Two are boring towards New Ashok Nagar and the other two towards Vaishali. The Sudarshan machine places rings which are made of seven segments. These tunnels are over a metre wider than metro tunnels since RRTS trains’ rakes are a bit larger than metro rakes as they also have luggage space and run at higher speed.

The first Sudarshan TBM is working in the direction of New Ashok Nagar and it has completed the construction of about 1.5 km of tunnel. The second Sudarshan has completed the construction of its parallel tunnel for about 1.2 km. Along with this, the third Sudarshan is working towards Sahibabad and it has completed about 700 meters of tunnel and the fourth Sudarshan has recently commenced tunnelling for the parallel tunnel. These four TBMs have completed a total of about 4km of tunnel construction in both directions. The Tunnel Segments are being manufactured at NCRTC’s Casting Yard with assured quality control. Due to the large rolling stock and a high design speed of 180mph,the width of RRTS tunnels is being constructed as 6.5 m. diameter. Compared to the metro systems, this is for the first time that a tunnel of such a large size is being constructed in the country. Multi-Modal Integration at Anand Vihar Station

At Anand Vihar RRTS station, passengers will descend to the main platform directly from the concourse. The platform here is much wider in comparison to Metro Platforms. The up line of RRTS is passing right through the basement of Anand Vihar Metro station perpendicularly bisects the Metro line for approx 50 meters. IIT consultants approved the construction under a functioning metro station. Monitoring devices track the area under the metro station 24×7 to detect any change in the vitals of the column’s load bearing capacity and detect any deflection. It has been done to ensure maximum convenience to commuters, as per NCRTC. To ensure smooth and uninterrupted travel, RRTS stations are planned in a way that they are connected to the existing modes of public transport wherever possible and are being built as close as possible to them.

The location of Anand Vihar RRTS station is strategically designed to facilitate multi-modal integration among the 6 modes of public transport present here. Multimodal Integration to facilitate convergence of different modes of travel at one place including two metro lines, two bus terminals and one Indian Railways station and Chaudhary Charan Singh Marg which is a major connecting road in Delhi. This Includes the Swami Vivekananda (Anand Vihar) Inter-State Bus Stand located at a distance of 150 meters, the City Bus Stand located at a distance of 150 meters, the Bus Stand of Uttar Pradesh State Road Transport Corporation (UPSRTC) located at Kaushambi at a distance of100 meters, the two metro corridors, the Pink and Blue Lines at a distance of 50 meters and the Anand Vihar Railway Station located at a distance of 200 meters from the Anand Vihar RRTS Station. It is done to discourage people from using private vehicles and use more and more public transport thereby reducing carbon emission. At Present, a Foot Over Bridge (FOB) is in place to connect the Metro Complex to Chaudhary Charan Singh Marg. The facility of lift, stairs and escalators will be provided to connect the RRTS station to it.

MD explains ‘strategic’ RRTS Project

Vinay Kumar Singh, MD of NCRTC, said, “We all know about the situation of pollution and traffic congestion in Delhi. RRTS is not just a transport project but a strategic investment project by the centre and four state governments. Anand Vihar and Sarai Kale Khan are two of the highly congested traffic areas in Delhi and it is our endeavour to facilitate safe and easy access and evacuation of people from these points. The location of Anand Vihar RRTS station is very important as it is at the centre of a multi-modal transport hub. NCERT made great efforts and faced delays in getting project approvals but we wanted this location. Constructing the station elsewhere was an easy option but at NCRTC we think long term. Commuters’ convenience is of utmost importance to us. RRTS is an extremely ambitious and complex project. Its objective is beyond just facilitated transport. Its objective is also to facilitate access to economic, education, medical and job-related facilities centered in Delhi So that people from far-flung areas can come here without adding to congestion in the capital. A high-speed, safe, reliable and comfortable rail network which offers commute in a fixed time will give people an option to live away from congested city centres. It is not an experiment but it is being done after witnessing similar projects successfully getting implemented world over. This will decentralize economic activities. It is a huge logistical and amazing effort at the lowest to highest level which helps in making such projects.”

”It is the vision of PM Narendra Modi that the new generation must get world-class infrastructure which we didn’t have. We are creating such big systems like RRTS to complement that vision. There will be three RRTS corridors indifferent states viz., Uttar Pradesh, Haryana and Rajasthan. People will be able to commute for work from these areas and go back on time thereby decongesting the capital. It is a long-term strategic planning,” Singh added. Singh also informed that trial runs of the RRTS rakes have started. “Presently trials are taking place in the depot. We already have two trains, the third is also coming soon. There are various types of trials runs including testing for traction system, rolling stock and signalling system. These trains have an automatic train protection system or ATP which is also getting tested. ATP makes sure that the train gets stopped correctly even if the driver fails or forgets to do so. Trains are behaving as per plan and design. Trials on the mainline will begin next month. High speed trials will involve various agencies.” “This is one of the first projects of its kind in India. Many states are also looking to implement it like in Haryana from Faridabad to Gurugram, Uttar Pradesh in Kanpur, around Hyderabad in Telangana where the state is doing a study and we are helping them. We will help every state which wants to implement this project,” Singh said.

RRTS train coaches are getting designed in Hyderabad and manufactured in Savli, Gujarat. They will have special features which are based on international safety standards and innovative design. The train will have ultra modern driver’s cabin, comfortable cushioned seats, luggage rack, space for standing passengers, auto lighting control, ergonomically designed grab-handles, CCTV surveillance, Wi-Fi, Mobile/Laptop charging and will offer panoramic view from wide windows. Premium class coaches of RRTS will have reclining seats, sun blinds, coat hook, magazine holder, foot-rest, space for stretchers and wheelchairs to handle medical emergencies. The first commercial run of RRTS trains is expected between Duhai and Meerut south stations by December next year.