Ministry, Reliance Infrastructure ready for safety audit on IGI airport metro

NEW DELHI: With trials on at the Airport Metro Express, the Delhi Metro is opting to go for a physical safety inspection of the corridor before opening the line.

A high-level meeting took place with the ministry of urban development and Reliance Infrastructure — the concessionaire for the airport metro line — on Wednesday and it was decided to get the high-speed corridor inspected by the chief of rail safety (CMRS), said sources.

“Once the CMRS inspection takes place, the corridor can be thrown open to the public immediately,” added the official. The CMRS inspection is a safety audit. Till now, there had been speculation that the inspection may not be required . However, sources said that the ministry was keen that all safety measures should be taken before the corridor is opened. “The request to the CMRS will be sent by next week. The remaining work, along the elevated stretch, will be completed before the inspection ,” the official said.

The re-opening of Airport Metro line comes in the wake of the concessionaire declaring its inability to run the corridor due to “financial non-viability” . Earlier in October, R-Infra had sent a letter to Delhi Metro informing it of being unable to run the Airport Metro Express due to financial losses. The Delhi Metro Rail Corporation (DMRC) in turn referred the matter to arbitration after refusing RInfra’s request.
According to sources, the work on the bearings is over. Once the trials are over and the safety audit has been carried out, the corridor is expected to start the operations. The line was closed due to concerns over safety as R-Infra had said that a majority of the bearings on the elevated section of the corridor were damaged . A joint survey by Delhi Metro and R-Infra , along with a third party, had revealed that over 90% of the bearings needed change.