The new Metro Rail Policy will delay six metro line projets of phase-IV in the national Capital. The total length of phase-IV will be 103 km and is scheduled to be completed in six years at a cost of around Rs 55,208 crore.
According to sources, with the approval of the new Metro Rail Policy-2017 by the Union Cabinet on Wednesday, the metro phase-IV is expected to be delayed as detailed projects report of six metro proposals will have to be revised. The new metro policy will not impact the ongoing third projects in the national Capital.
According to sources, phase-IV is expected to be delayed by six month to one year as the new metro policy requires State Governments seeking a metro rail system to set up, within a year, an urban metropolitan transport authority (UMTA) that will prepare comprehensive mobility plans to integrate different transport systems for optimal capacity utilisation.
Setting up UMTA in Delhi is an uphill task as several agencies come under Centre while some come under State Government. Similarly, the State Government or authorities will have to tell the Ministry of Urban Development why another mode of transportation such as mono rail, bus rapid transit system, and tram rail would not solve the traffic problem and why metro is needed.
Besides, cities or State Government will have to give details about how metro will reduce pollution, traffic jam and how much employment will generate. As per the plan, under Delhi phase-IV metro projects, 104 km will be expanded.
Sources said that third phase of metro is yet to be completed due to land acquisition. In the fourth phase, some work will have to be done on the basis of public private partnership (PPP).
The phase-IV metro lines will add 8.5 lakh passengers everyday to the ridership. It will comprise a 67 km elevated road and would add 79 stations to the network out of which 50 will be elevated. The total length of the Rithala-Bawana-Narela line will be 21.73 km and it will have 16 stations while the 12.54 km Mukundpur-Maujpur line will have six stations, all elevated.
The Janakpuri West-RK Ashram stretch will be of 28.92 km with 18 elevated and seven underground stations on the line. The length of Inderlok-Indraprastha line will be 12.58 km and will have ten stations that will all be underground.
The 20.20 km Aero City-Tughlakabad line will have ten underground and five elevated stations, while the lajpat Nagar-Saket G-block stretch will be 7.96-km-long and have one underground and five elevated stations, while one station will be at grade (on the ground level). The capital cost of Rithala-Bawana-Narela line will be Rs 7,836 crore and for Mukundpur-Maujpur line, it will be Rs 4,476 crore.
The capital cost of Janakpuri West-RK Ashram stretch will be Rs 14,522 crore while for Inderlok-Indraprastha line, it will be Rs 8,421 crore. Similarly, the capital cost of Aero City-Tughlakabad line will be Rs 11,330 crore while for lajpat Nagar-Saket G-block stretch, it will be Rs 3,018 crore.