Chennai Mass Rapid Transit System: Difference between revisions
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Revision as of 16:12, 2 March 2011
13°05′32″N 80°17′33″E / 13.09233°N 80.29251°E
- For the true metro under construction, see Chennai Metro
Chennai MRTS சென்னை எம் ஆர் டி எஸ் | |||
---|---|---|---|
Overview | |||
Owner | Southern Railway (India) | ||
Locale | Chennai (Madras) | ||
Transit type | Rapid transit | ||
Number of lines | 1 (Phase I & II) | ||
Number of stations | 21 (Phase I & II) | ||
Daily ridership | 76,800[1] | ||
Website | http://www.southernrailway.gov.in/sutt/mrts.php | ||
Operation | |||
Began operation | 1997 | ||
Operator(s) | Southern Railway (India) | ||
Technical | |||
System length | Template:Km to mi [Line 1] | ||
Track gauge | Broad gauge | ||
Electrification | 25 kV, 50 Hz AC through overhead catenary | ||
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The Mass Rapid Transit System (MRTS) is an elevated line of the urban mass transit system (metro-like cityrail) in Chennai (Madras), India. The line currently runs within city from Chennai Beach (Madras Beach) to Velachery, covering a distance of 25 km with 21 stations. In spite of full technical and logical separation from the Chennai Suburban Railway, the MRTS is operated by the state-owned Southern Railway (SR), a zone of Indian Railways.
History
Chennai, India's fourth-largest urban agglomeration, has a well-established suburban railway network, which dates back to 1931, when services began on the metre-gauge line from Beach to Tambaram. Two more suburban services were begun in 1985—Madras Central to Arakkonam and Madras Central to Gummidipoondi, both of which were broad-gauge services.
In the 1980s, the government began planning for a new railway line inside the city. The Suburban Lines offered no connectivity to Central and South Madras (as Chennai was known then). Planning began in 1985 and construction was started in 1991 . The first phase was much delayed and finally opened in 1997. The section of the line encompassing the first three Stations—Beach, Fort and Park Town, is at grade; after Park Town it begins climbing. All the Stations after Park Town—Chintadripet, Chepauk, Tiruvallikeni, Lighthouse and Thirumaylai are elevated. The Line from Park Town to Thirumaylai follows the course of the Buckingham Canal, which runs parallel to the Coromandel Coast.
The second phase of the MRTS connects Thirumaylai to Velachery, a southern suburb. Till Perungudi station all the stations are elevated. One of the main stations in this stretch is Thiruvanmiyur Station, which is just across from Tidel Park. The elevated track between Thiruvanmiyur and Velachery was opened to public on November 19, 2007.
Design
Each MRTS Station is designed by a different architect and is built to accommodate a full-length EMU (Electric Multiple Unit) rake, possibly consisting of 9 or 12 cars. Currently six-car and nine-car rakes are run on the line, as the traffic on the MRTS Line is considerably less than the three Suburban Lines, where nine and twelve-car rakes run daily. Though the headway is expected once the patronage increases steadily. The MRTS runs from Beach to Velachery in about 40 minutes (compared to 2 hours by road in peak hours for the same distance). The first train from Beach starts at 4:15 am and the last starts at 9:35 pm. In reverse the first train from Velachery starts at 5:00 am and runs till 10.20 pm. MRTS runs a total of 62 pairs (Up and Down) of train on a daily basis on weekdays. But on Sundays it is considerably less. The trains run on the MRTS are 'normal' EMUs, and do not have automatic doors like a Metro train. This is because the MRTS is considered to be an elevated extension of the Suburban Network and not a Metro System, as such. However, the MRTS can be considered a Metro, since it is elevated for the majority of its length, and its services are exclusive, i.e. no other trains run on the MRTS Line.
Corridors
Corridor 1: Chennai Beach (MSB) — St. Thomas Mount (STM) [24.715 km]
Corridor 2: Thiruvanmiyur (TVMR) — Mamallapuram
It has been proposed to extend the MRTS corridor from Thiruvanmiyur to Mamallapuram[2]
Corridor 1: Chennai Beach — St. Thomas Mount
Phases
The project involves three phases, of which Phase I and Phase II are completed. Phase II extension is under construction.
Phase | Length (elevated) in km | Route | Stations | Cost (Initial Estimate) in crore rupees | Sanction | Opening | Finish |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Phase I | 8.55 (5.80) | Chennai Beach - Thirumayilai | 8 | 260 (53.46) | 1984 | Nov 1, 1995 | Oct 19, 1997 |
Phase II | 11.16 (11) | Thirumayilai - Velachery | 9 | 665 (733.4) | 1998 | Jan 26, 2004 | Nov 19, 2007 |
Phase II Ext | 5 (5) | Velachery - St. Thomas Mount | 3 | (417) | 2007 | Exp. 2012 | |
Phase III | 16.76 (~10.76) | St. Thomas Mount- Villivakkam | 10 | - | - | - |
source:CMDA
Phase II extension
Work on the 5 km, three-station Phase II extension from Velachery to St. Thomas Mount started in 2008, for completion by December 2010.[3] The cost of the project is estimated at Rs. 495.7 crore. However, one of the prime contractors is Maytas Infra, a subsidiary of the troubled Satyam, and Southern Railway has expressed its concern about an apparent halt in work since last 2008.[4]
Phase III and beyond
The planned route for the MRTS will see it turn north after St Thomas Mount and touch the Suburban Line to Arakkonam at Villivakkam before continuing further North East and eventually going down to Grade, i.e. surface level again and merging with the Suburban Line to Gummidipoondi at Tondiarpet.
MRTS take over by CMRL
As of now, Southern Railways operates the MRTS Section. On August 2010, Mr.T.V. Somanathan, Managing Director, Chennai Metro Rail has proposed a plan for take over of MRTS by the Chennai Metro Rail Limited once the Metro becomes operational. Acquisition of MRTS with Chennai Metro will create a single point authority for all the elevated rail networks in Chennai. After the merger, the current MRTS rail stretch will run Advanced rail cars with air-conditioned rakes that have automatic doors and the same will replace all the normal EMUs.[5]
Gallery
Station Models
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Indira Nagar
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Thiruvanmiyur (actual building)
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Taramani I
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Velachery
MRTS Stations
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Velachery MRTS station
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Tirumailai MRTS station (interior)
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Tirumailai MRTS station (exterior)
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Thiruvanmiyur station (exterior)
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Thiruvanmiyur station (interior, ground floor)
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Chintadripet station
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Chintadripet station
Misc.
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GPS showing train timings
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EMU at Velachery station
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Side profile of EMU in MRTS
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MRTS crossing in IT Corridor
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Aerial view when MRTS was under construction
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Mylapore railway station at afternoon.
Criticism
The MRTS has often come under criticism for poor maintenance, lack of security and no connectivity options with other transit systems. There is also a wastage of floor space in all its stations which was initially planned to be used for commercial purposes.[6][7] In Early 1970s, Madras Area Traffic Study Unit (MATSU) has estimated about six lakh per day ridership by MRTS. Currently, only about 70,000 people travel by MRTS making the MRTS a failure project.
The Operational cost of the entire stretch is about Rs.18 lakh per day while revenue generated mounts to only Rs.3 lakh per day. With this, MRTS incurs an annual operational loss of about Rs.54.7 crore. According to the view of Railway officials, the operational loss will be mitigated by execution of Phase II of the project (Thirumalai to Velacherry).[8]
See also
References
- ^ http://www.hindu.com/2009/11/21/stories/2009112160930400.htm
- ^ http://www.cmdachennai.gov.in/Volume1_English_PDF/Vol1_Chapter04_Transport.pdf
- ^ http://www.hindu.com/2008/02/27/stories/2008022759130400.htm
- ^ http://www.maalaimalar.com/asp/news/dis_news_article.asp?artid=307749
- ^ http://www.thehindu.com/news/cities/Chennai/article553984.ece
- ^ http://www.hindu.com/2009/11/21/stories/2009112160930400.htm
- ^ http://www.hindu.com/2009/07/13/stories/2009071358630400.htm
- ^ http://www.thehindu.com/news/cities/Chennai/article553984.ece