Navi Mumbai’s first Metro line to begin services from today

“The much awaited metro services will commence on line 1 between Belapur and Pendhar from November 17. Hearty congratulations to all Navi Mumbaikars. The Maharashtra government had given instructions to City and Industrial Development Corporation (CIDCO) that Metro should be made operational at the earliest for the citizens of Navi Mumbai. Accordingly, Metro services are being commenced without waiting for an official public programme,” Shinde said.

The first service on the Navi Mumbai Metro line, which will have 11 stations, will commence at 3 pm on Friday.

From November 18, services will run from 6 am to 10 pm, with a 15-minute interval between each service.

CIDCO, which is the project implementing authority, plans to deploy a total of eight sets of three-coach rakes for services.

According to a release by CIDCO, the fares for Metro services are Rs 10 for 0 to 2 km distance, Rs 15 for 2 to 4 km, Rs 20 for 4 to 6 km, Rs 25 for 6 to 8 km, Rs 30 for 8 to 10 km and Rs 40 for distances beyond 10 km.

The Commissioner of Metro Railway Safety (CMRS) had approved commencement of operations on the complete stretch in June. CIDCO had in October issued a tender seeking an event management company for the inauguration ceremony.

Anil Diggikar, vice-chairman and managing director of CIDCO, said that the rapidly developing Kharghar and Taloja nodes would experience improved connectivity with Belapur through the Metro.

He highlighted that the Metro’s efficient public transport system would bolster Navi Mumbai’s stature as an international city.

According to CIDCO, the Navi Mumbai Metro features state-of-the-art air-conditioned coaches, entry and exit arrangements on both north and south sides of the Metro stations, parking spaces, ramps for disabled passengers, footpaths, areas for auto rickshaws, diesel generators with UPS for continuous power supply, passenger announcement systems, CCTV surveillance, specially designed toilets for disabled persons at concourse levels, and commercial shops in the concourse area.

This metro line has a maintenance depot at Taloja and two traction substations at Panchanand and Kharghar.

This elevated Metro line has been in the making for the past 13 years. The foundation stone was laid in 2011 but the project was delayed facing challenges related to contractors and technical obstacles.

The total post of the project was Rs 3063 crore. CIDCO has appointed Maharashtra Metro Rail Corporation Limited (Maha Metro) for running services on Line 1 of the project for a period of 10 years. CIDCO will pay Rs 500 crore to Maha Metro for running metro rail services.

CIDCO has proposed the construction of three more Metro lines in Navi Mumbai which it plans to construct as Metro Neo which is different from a conventional metro system.

The Metro Neo is a trolley bus system with overhead electric traction. The other lines include Metro Line 2 — a 7.12 km stretch connecting MIDC Taloja to Khandeshwar, Line 3 — a 3.87 km stretch connecting Pendhar to MIDC Taloja, and Line 4 — a 4.17 km stretch that will run from Navi Mumbai International Airport to Panvel. Work on these lines is yet to begin.