India to have world's second-largest metro system in a year: Hardeep Puri

Union Minister of Housing and Urban Affairs Hardeep Singh Puri on Friday said that India will have the world's second-largest operational urban transport metro system in a year and a half.

"In a year and a half, India will have the world's second-largest operational urban transport metro system, bigger even than the United States," Hardeep Puri said while speaking to ANI in Delhi.

Speaking on the Delhi-Ghaziabad-Meerut RRTS Corridor, the Union Minister said, "It's one of the high-speed connectivity between cities. The distance between Delhi and Meerut is normally covered in current traffic conditions in 3 hours. When this is ready, it'll be covered in 50-55 minutes. So it's a very major development."

He further highlighted that as the economy grows the urban space and the investment received in the sector will also grow.

"And as the economy grows, you'd find that the urban space, the investment in the urban space, the facilities, amenities for our citizens, all that will grow and increase with the growth in the size of the GDP," Hardeep Puri added.

Prime Minister Narendra Modi earlier today inaugurated the priority section of the Delhi-Ghaziabad-Meerut RRTS Corridor and called it a historic moment for the entire country.

Addressing the public after the inauguration of the 17 Km priority section, PM Modi said, "This is a historic moment for the entire country. Today the functioning of the RRTS corridor has begun also India's first Rapid Rail services - Namo Bharat train are being dedicated to the nation."

The 17 Km priority section of the Delhi-Ghaziabad-Meerut RRTS Corridor will connect Sahibabad to 'Duhai Depot' with stations at Ghaziabad, Guldhar and Duhai on the way. The foundation stone for the Delhi-Ghaziabad-Meerut corridor was laid by the Prime Minister on March 8, 2019.

With the train service operational, the travel time between Sahibabad and Duhai Depot will be 12 minutes, which would usually take around 30-35 minutes by road.

The RRTS project is developed in line with the Prime Minister's vision to transform regional connectivity in the country through the construction of new world-class transport infrastructure. The RRTS is a new rail-based, semi-high-speed, high-frequency commuter transit system.

With a design speed of 180 kmph, RRTS is a transformational, regional development initiative, which is designed to provide high-speed trains for intercity commuting every 15 minutes, which can go up to a frequency of every 5 minutes as per requirement.