Airport Metro set to roll tomorrow

The fare from the Dwarka Sector 21 Metro station to the IGI Airport,which is just one stop away,will be Rs 30.

Metro services will open with a 16-hour schedule — from 6 am to 10 pm — for the first few days,after which the operational hours will gradually be taken up to 20 hours a day,officials said.

Central Industrial Security Force (CISF) personnel started taking their positions at the four Metro stations — New Delhi,Shivaji Stadium,IGI Airport and Dwarka Sector 21 — that will be opened on the corridor on Monday,and were ‘familiarised’ and ‘sensitised’ about the stations and the corridor. The CISF will now conduct anti-sabotage checks and the ‘sweeping’ process,both routine security processes,on the stations on Tuesday.

“The CISF deployment is already under process and will get over by Tuesday. Familiarisation and sensitisation of the CISF personnel is in progress and anti-sabotage checks will be conducted on Tuesday,after which the CISF will be ready for operations by February 23 morning,” said CISF spokesperson Rohit Katiyar.

On the first day of operations,services will begin at 2 pm after a religious ceremony by the operators. The formal inauguration is slated for March,when all six stations on the corridor are thrown open.

Baggage check-in facility will be available at the three City Airport Terminals (stations)— New Delhi,Shivaji Stadium and Dhaula Kuan — once talks with Air India and other airlines are finalised. AI executives have already surveyed the provisions and expressed their interest in setting up the counters at the stations,officials said.

Talks are also on with national carriers like Jet Airways and Kingfisher. It is most likely to begin at New Delhi and Shivaji in another 10 day’s time.

Completion of work at the Dhaula Kuan station is expected to take over two weeks. The Aerocity Metro station too is expected to take more time as road connectivity to the station is still not provided.

The line’s concessionaire will issue a public notification formally announcing the opening date,route,fare and operational hours of the service on Tuesday.