Chandigarh-Delhi rail route curves may go

New Delhi, May 11

The Railways will examine the possibility of straightening up to 10 major curves on the existing Delhi-Chandigarh rail route to increase the train speed up to 200 kmph.

The 245-km Delhi-Chandigarh corridor, one of the busiest routes in northern India, is slated to be the first semi-high speed project being taken up by the public transporter to run trains at speeds of 200 kmph with French help. The SNCF, the French railways, has been assigned the task of submitting the execution strategy and implementation model with detailed cost of the semi-high speed project involving upgrade of the Chandigarh route. A review meeting was held between senior railway officials and a French railway team here which examined various issues, including signalling upgrade, elimination of curves and the power-control system, concerning the Delhi-Chandigarh route.

There are about 10 major curves spanning over 32 km on the existing rail route between Delhi and Chandigarh, which need to be eliminated for scaling up the speed to 200 kmph, said a senior Railway Ministry official involved in the project.

Elimination of the curves, crucial for increasing the train speed, involves land acquisition to lay 32 km of new lines between Delhi and Chandigarh. — PTI