Metro to carry out trial runs of AC rakes between Howrah Maidan & Esplanade soon

KOLKATA: The metro railway will be carrying out trial runs between Howrah Maidan and Esplanade soon. On the other hand, the trial run between Joka and Taratala will begin from next month.

The metro line between Howrah Maidan and Esplanade is part of the East-West Metro corridor. In between these stations, there are two metro stations—Howrah and Mahakaran.

The work for this corridor is being done by the Kolkata Metro Rail Corporation (KMRC). The test runs will be done by AC rakes only.

Reportedly, the KMRC's work of laying down the lines from both directions has been completed and electricity supply work on the third line up to Esplanade has been completed.

Even if the trial runs start soon, the completion of the project will at least extend to next year.

Meanwhile, non-AC rakes will be transported from the Noapara carshed to the Joka terminal for Phase-1 trials of the Joka-Esplanade Metro corridor. This project is being carried out by the Rail Vikas Nigam Limited (RVNL).

They were supposed to start trials for the section this month, however, identifying and preparation of rake took time. Reportedly, the two of the eight coaches will be ferried every alternative day. These assembled rakes will undergo practice runs inside the depot.