Foundation Laying Ceremony held at New Depot
Agra : Taking another significant step towards strengthening Agra’s public transport infrastructure, Uttar Pradesh Metro Rail Corporation (UPMRC) commenced construction work on the second depot of Agra Metro. The construction work has been formally inaugurated on Thursday with a traditional puja ceremony in the presence of Project Director Shri Arvind Rai along with other senior UPMRC officials and employees.
The first depot of Agra Metro is located at the 15th Battalion PAC campus near Circuit House road. It is fully operational and is facilitating metro operations on the Priority Corridor. The commencement of construction work of the second depot near Phool Syed Crossing is a significant milestone in expanding infrastructure for the Agra Metro network.
Depot 1 connected to Depot 2
The most important feature of the second depot is that it will be interconnected with the existing depot. This seamless integration will provide greater operational flexibility and facilitate the movement, deployment and maintenance of trains across both corridors.
It is to be noted that earlier, the second depot was proposed at Kalindi Vihar. The shifting of Depot to the new location has been initiated to bring down the construction and operational cost.
Furthermore, a separate depot at Kalindi Vihar would have required for separate maintenance facilities and machinery. This would have led to duplication of infrastructure and additional expenditure for establishing and maintaining the required facilities.
Keeping in view operational efficiency and optimum utilisation of resources, UPMRC has planned the second depot in close proximity to the existing depot, with provision for interconnection between the two facilities.
Greater operational flexibility and maintenance efficiency
Agra Metro is planned with a fleet of 28 train sets which according to the previous plan would have resulted in 12 train sets being utilised for Corridor 1 and 16 train sets for Corridor 2.
With the two depots being interconnected to each other, all 28 train sets of Agra Metro shall be utilised across both corridors as per operational requirements. This will provide greater flexibility in train deployment and enable efficient utilisation of the available fleet.
The integrated depot infrastructure will also facilitate train maintenance by allowing the utilisation of common maintenance infrastructure and facilities. This will reduce burden on machinery and infrastructure, thus also contributing to savings in project and maintenance expenditure.
The commencement of construction of the second depot marks another important milestone for Agra Metro. The integrated depot system is expected to support efficient train operations and maintenance as the metro network expands to give the people of Agra a fast, safe and environment friendly urban transportation.
Public Relations Department
Uttar Pradesh Metro Rail Corporation Ltd.