RRTS Corridor: Hi-tech RAPIDX trains have exclusive coach, lounge for premium class

Ghaziabad: India's first semi-high-speed regional rail service -- RAPIDX -- whose trains are equipped with hi-tech features and a number of passenger amenities, is all set for its inaugural run on October 21, a day after the inauguration of the 17-km priority section of the Delhi-Ghaziabad-Meerut RRTS Corridor.

The priority section, between Sahibabad and Duhai Depot, has five stations -- Sahibabad, Ghaziabad, Guldhar, Duhai and Duhai Depot. The segment from Duhai to Duhai Depot is a spur from the main corridor.

Prime Minister Narendra Modi will inaugurate the priority section at the Sahibabad RAPIDX station in Uttar Pradesh on Friday.

The Prime Minister's Office (PMO) on Wednesday said he will flag off a RAPIDX train connecting Sahibabad and Duhai Depot stations, marking the launch of the RRTS in India.

The foundation stone for the RRTS Delhi-Ghaziabad-Meerut Corridor was laid by him on March 8, 2019.

A media preview of the RAPIDX trains was held on Wednesday ahead of the inauguration of the priority section.

"A day after the inauguration of the priority section, passenger services will begin from October 21 morning. RAPIDX trains will be operational between 6 am and 11 pm. Initially, trains will be available every 15 minutes, though the frequency can be increased on a requirement basis in the future," an official source told PTI on Tuesday.

Every RAPIDX train will have six coaches, including a premium coach. One coach in every train is reserved for women and it is the coach next to the premium coach. Seats in coaches are serially numbered Also, there are reserved seats for women, specially-abled, and senior citizens in other coaches, the officials said.

Premium coaches have a seat with a different colour code, a provision for installing a vending machine in future, besides a host of additional commuter-centric features like reclining seats, coat hooks, magazine holders and footrests, officials said on Wednesday.

The soon-to-open section of the RRTS Delhi-Meerut Corridor will also facilitate the movement of patients as one general coach in each train will have the space to accommodate a medical stretcher and a wheelchair.

Besides, some of the lifts installed at its stations are elongated for extra room to accommodate a stretcher, officials of the National Capital Region Transport Corporation (NCRTC) said.

CCTV cameras, an emergency door-opening mechanism and a button to communicate with a train operator are among the safety features in trains that will ply on this section from October 21.

For enhanced safety, every RRTS station is equipped with platform screen doors (PSDs). These PSDs are integrated with RRTS train doors and the signalling system.

On Wednesday, during the media preview, trains were run on the priority section at a speed up to 130-140 kmph. Speed and station names are displayed on screens installed inside coaches.

Trains can operate on this corridor even up to a speed of 160 kmph, but the operational speed will be lesser, a senior official said.

A push-button facility on the doors of the trains will allow passengers to board and get off the train when it halts at a station, officials said.

This step has been taken as a measure to "save energy", they said, adding that the push-button only gets activated after a train comes to a halt at a station.

However, initially, the door operation in coaches will be done automatically, and train attendants and ground staff will assist passengers till they fully get used to this system, officials said.

Once the corridor gets operationalised, people can commute between Sahibabad and Duhai Depot stations on this line in about 12 minutes, they said.

A one-way journey from Sahibabad to Duhai Depot station on the priority section of this RRTS Corridor will cost Rs 50, while the fare for the same route will be Rs 100 in a premium-class coach.

If a passenger enters from one station, say Sahibabad station and exits from the same station, then it will cost Rs 20.

Children having a height below 90 cm will be allowed to travel free, the NCRTC said.

Commuters can buy a paper QR code-based ticket, which can be generated via ticket vending machines (TVM) or bought from ticket counters at the RAPIDX stations, officials said.

Unified Payments Interface or UPI-enabled ticket vending machines have been installed to purchase paper QR code-based tickets and recharge the National Common Mobility Card (NCMC).

Passengers can use bank notes, bank cards, National Common Mobility Cards and UPI to buy tickets from a TVM, they said.

The under-construction RRTS Corridor, being built for a semi-high-speed regional rail service named 'RAPIDX' by the NCRTC, is a joint venture company of the Centre with the governments of Delhi, Haryana, Rajasthan, and Uttar Pradesh.

The NCRTC has been tasked to oversee the construction of India's first RRTS, between Delhi and Meerut.

"The government of Uttar Pradesh has entrusted the responsibility of security of all the stations in the state to the Uttar Pradesh Special Security Force (UPSSF) and the deployment of security force at the stations of the priority section has already been done," another senior official said.

The NCRTC has been tasked to oversee the construction of India's first RRTS, between Delhi and Meerut.

The entire 82.15 km Delhi-Ghaziabad-Meerut RRTS is targeted to be operational by June 2025.

The RRTS corridor, once fully operational would cut down the travel time between Delhi and Meerut to around 55 minutes from the current three to four hours by road.