Delhi Metro Airport Express link now opened

The Delhi Metro’s high profile Airport Express link finally opened on Wednesday — but without fanfare.

Most of the super-fast trains, which will reach the airport from the heart of the city in 18 minutes at 105kmph, ran almost empty on the inaugural journey. By 6pm, only 6,000 people had travelled in the sleek, imported six- coach trains after services began at 2pm.

Earlier in the afternoon, up to 350 passengers travelled in the trains. Considering that each train can seat 332 passengers and stand 70 more and the trains run at a frequency of 20 minutes, the occupancy on the first day was not impressive.

Yet the few who travelled on the trains expressed happiness with the facility. “ At Rs. 80 (the fare to the airport from New Delhi), the fare is quite reasonable.

Even if a group of four people pools in money to hire a taxi, there is no guarantee that you will get to the airport for Rs. 320. The train is air- conditioned and offers good value for money,” said Vikrant, a passenger. Officials in charge of running the trains said they were not worried about the empty coaches on the first day and expected that the coaches would run to packed capacity in the days ahead.

The officials said the opening was not intended to be a low-key affair. The Delhi Airport Metro Express Private Limited (DAMEPL), the company that will run the trains, had been trying to get Prime Minister Manmohan Singh and other highlevel dignitaries to open the line.

However, with penalty clauses related to the delay in the line’s opening a constant worry, the line was finally opened. DMRC MD E. Sreedharan and Reliance Infra director and CEO Lalit Jalan were present at the launch. “ The formal inauguration is expected to be a grand one,” a DAMEPL official promised.

The airport link has six stations — New Delhi, Shivaji Stadium, Dhaula Kuan, Delhi Aero City, IGI Airport and Dwarka Sector- 21. The line is 22.7km

long: 15.7km underground and the rest 7km elevated. Passengers can eventually check in and avail their boarding passes at New Delhi, Shivaji Stadium and Dhaula Kuan stations. Baggage check- in facilities will be available at New Delhi and Shivaji Stadium stations. The check- in facility is expected to start shortly, officials said.

The security on the line is being provided by around 400 CISF personnel. Other security arrangements include state- ofthe- art gadgets such as explosive detectors, large X- ray baggage scanners, rapid action teams and dog squads.

The trains running on this line have been imported from CAF, Spain, one of the world’s leading manufacturers of trains, and offer a smooth ride. The plush interiors with diffused lighting are soothing. The coaches are spacious, allowing ample space for luggage. Passengers on the stations and inside the trains are updated about the status of their flights via Flight Information Display System boards.