The first model coach of Chennai Metro Rail that was manufactured in Brazil has arrived in the city.
Soon, it will be taken to Sri City, a Special Economic Zone (SEZ) located near Tada in Andhra Pradesh, about 60 km north of Chennai. Manufacturer of the coach, transport infrastructure major Alstom, has a facility there.
The model coach, or ‘mock-up’ as it is known in design parlance, is currently at the Chennai Port, according to officials of Chennai Metro Rail Limited (CMRL).
It seeks to give CMRL an idea of what the actual train will look like. “The materials used to make this coach are not those which will be used in the actual metro coaches, but we will get a sense of the final product. Once we have a look at it, we might think about displaying it somewhere in Chennai, for public viewing,” said an official.
Costly coaches
Each coach costs CMRL Rs. 9 crore. Chennai Metro Rail is expected to operate 42 trains in all, with four coaches each. The trains will have a total capacity of 1,276 persons. The seats will be by the windows on either side of the coach, with room for passengers to stand in between. In addition to this, space will be earmarked for wheelchair-users, officials said.
CMRL expects to have the metro rail operational along the elevated stretch from Koyambedu to St. Thomas Mount, part of corridor II of the mega project, in the first quarter of 2014.
Nine trains to arrive
A set of nine trains, which will actually ply as part of the Chennai Metro Rail service, will arrive in Chennai in April 2013. The remaining 33 trains, to be manufactured at Alstom’s unit in India, will be modelled on them, CMRL officials said.
Chennai Metro Rail is coming up at an estimated cost Rs. 14,600 crore. Currently, considerable work along the elevated stretch has been completed, and track-laying work is on. Paralleled, underground tunnelling work is in progress at different points along the stretch from Thirumangalam to Egmore — through Poonamallee High Road — and Washermanpet to Saidapet, covering almost all of Anna Salai.
