New underground Metro station at Central Secretariat

Monday , Dec 21, 2009

By September next year, the existing Metro station at Central Secretariat with double up to cater to the existing Line 2 which will beextended to Gurgaon and a new Metro line to Badarpur. To provide seamless connectivity and interchange between the two lines, Delhi Metro Rail Corporation (DMRC) has created a new underground station beside the existing one and the two are going to be interlinked at the platform as well as concourse (ticketing) levels.

For all those travelling on the Jehangirpuri-Central Secretariat-Gurgaon and Central Secretariat-Badarpur Metro lines, the station will act as an interchange point where passengers can switch lines. For better connectivity, all passengers entering this underground Metro station will find a common concourse from where they can purchase tokens/smart cards and move towards the platform of their destination using lifts, escalators or staircases.

"Direct access will be provided between the platforms of Line 2 (Jehangirpuri to Gurgaon) and Line 6 (Central Secretariat to Badarpur) so that passengers from Jehangirpuri side wanting to travel towards Badarpur have to walk a short distance on the same level to change trains. Other passengers will have to come up to the concourse level before changing platforms,'' explained a DMRC spokesperson.

This is the first time an operational Metro station has been expanded. "The task is challenging as construction activities are being carried out without causing inconvenience to commuters. It was also very complex for the engineers to excavate a tunnel at a depth of approximately 16m running through the high-security Lutyens' Zone,'' the spokesperson added.

The new underground station has been constructed using the cut and cover technique. It has a height of 5.75m and width of 5.2m, stretching up to the Udyog Bhawan underground Metro station. The length of each platform is 140m with a width of 6.5m. The station will have five entry/exit points, which will be common for the old and new stations.

Parking at Central Secretariat station will also be restored by September 2010, after the Badarpur line becomes operational. The Gurgaon line is scheduled to start by June next year. The passenger subway at Gate No 4 will also be reopened at the same time.

The construction work of the Metro station for Line 6 started in September 2007 and over 75% of the civil work has been completed. The new Central Secretariat-Badarpur corridor will have 15 stations covering a distance of 20.16km. The expected daily traffic on this corridor is 3,60,122 by 2011.

Original news source http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/city/delhi/New-underground-Metro-station-at-C-Sec-/articleshow/5359968.cms

ON TRACK - Railway minister rolls out gift for east Delhi residents

Sunday , Dec 20, 2009

It's a New Year gift to more than 50-lakh people residing in East Delhi and surrounding areas.

Union Railway Minister Mamata Banerjee and Delhi Chief Minister Sheila Dikshit jointly inaugurated the new station building of the new railway terminal at Anand Vihar.

But to begin with, only one platform will be operational.<br>"This is only the beginning and it will soon be expanded," Dikshit said.

Dilskhit said the new terminal would benefit over 10 lakh people who come to Delhi everyday in their cars or buses and add to vehicular pressure on Delhi roads.

"Delhi's traffic is really bad and every one in Delhi is worried about it. The new terminal will help in decongesting Delhi's roads," Dikshit said.

In the long run, the new terminal will have 272 trains - long distance express and passenger trains as well as local and shuttle -- to and from Uttar Pradesh, Bihar, Jharkhand, West Bengal and other eastern states either originating or passing through the station.

"From March 10, three new express trains -- Garibrath Express for Motihari, one for Jogbani and another for Varanasi, will start from Anand Vihar. Two more trains, one for Farakka and another for New Jalpaiguri, will also start soon," a northern railway spokesperson said.

While the officials maintained that all eastbound trains will start or terminate at Anand Vihar terminal, they refused to say how soon it is going to happen.

The railway minister also flagged off the first express train, which will originate and terminate at Anand Vihar. The Anand Vihar-Lucknow winter special will run thrice a week.

On the lines of the railway's first women special EMU train between New Delhi and Palwal, Banerjee also inaugurated another women's special train to run between Ghaziabad and New Delhi. She also announced the launch of more women special trains and re-christening them to 'Matrabhoomi Special'.

Banerjee also announced increase in number of coaches in Delhi - Panipat EMU train from 12 to 15.

Keeping the Commonwealth Games 2010 in mind, Banerjee said, "A special train would be run throughout the country to popularise the games."<div id=speechData style='display:none;'>It's a New Year gift to more than 50-lakh people residing in East Delhi and surrounding areas.

Union Railway Minister Mamata Banerjee and Delhi Chief Minister Sheila Dikshit jointly inaugurated the new station building of the new railway terminal at Anand Vihar.

But to begin with, only one platform will be operational.<br>"This is only the beginning and it will soon be expanded," Dikshit said.

Dilskhit said the new terminal would benefit over 10 lakh people who come to Delhi everyday in their cars or buses and add to vehicular pressure on Delhi roads.

"Delhi's traffic is really bad and every one in Delhi is worried about it. The new terminal will help in decongesting Delhi's roads," Dikshit said.

In the long run, the new terminal will have 272 trains - long distance express and passenger trains as well as local and shuttle -- to and from Uttar Pradesh, Bihar, Jharkhand, West Bengal and other eastern states either originating or passing through the station.

"From March 10, three new express trains -- Garibrath Express for Motihari, one for Jogbani and another for Varanasi, will start from Anand Vihar. Two more trains, one for Farakka and another for New Jalpaiguri, will also start soon," a northern railway spokesperson said.

While the officials maintained that all eastbound trains will start or terminate at Anand Vihar terminal, they refused to say how soon it is going to happen.

The railway minister also flagged off the first express train, which will originate and terminate at Anand Vihar. The Anand Vihar-Lucknow winter special will run thrice a week.

On the lines of the railway's first women special EMU train between New Delhi and Palwal, Banerjee also inaugurated another women's special train to run between Ghaziabad and New Delhi. She also announced the launch of more women special trains and re-christening them to 'Matrabhoomi Special'.

Banerjee also announced increase in number of coaches in Delhi - Panipat EMU train from 12 to 15.

Keeping the Commonwealth Games 2010 in mind, Banerjee said, "A special train would be run throughout the country to popularise the games."

Original Article sourced from http://hindustantimes.com

Traffic cops mull extra tax for those owning more than two vehicles

Wednesday , Dec 16, 2009

If you fancy a fleet of cars parked in front of your house, be ready to shell out more as taxes.

The Delhi Traffic Police has told the High Court that it favours levying additional taxes on those who own more than two vehicles. In a submission before the High Court, the department said it is mulling stricter taxation rules to keep a check on the number of vehicles — fast spiralling out of control and severely adding to the city's traffic problems.

The traffic department's counsel, Vikas Pahwa, told a Special Bench comprising Chief Justice A P Shah and Justices S Muralidhar and S Ravinder Bhatt that the suggestions have already been submitted to the Delhi government for consideration and suitable action.

Pahwa told the Bench that putting on hold registration of vehicles is the first step "to ease out traffic on roads". He told the court: "For those who have more than two vehicles registered in their names, we are planning to slap more taxes in the form of road tax, parking charges, area pricing and other such taxes."

He said the stringent norms are necessary since about 30 per cent vehicles on Delhi roads are cars, and two-wheelers constitute 62 per cent.

The Bench said the government should consider the change in regulations governing taxes for vehicles.

The court was hearing a petition by the NGO Manushi, which said the court's order and MCD's policy of banning cycle rickshaws from main arterial roads and Chandni Chowk was arbitrary and violated fundamental rights of rickshawpullers. The Bench reserved its verdict and asked the civic body's counsel to submit the written arguments in a week's time.

The government had earlier suggested the introduction of biometric badges for cycle rickshawpullers, and also adopting different colour codes for each city zone.

Original Article sourced from http://www.expressindia.com/latest-news/traffic-cops-mull-extra-tax-for-those-owning-more-than-two-vehicles/554612/

Delhi Metro starts trial run on new route

Saturday , Dec 12, 2009

The Delhi Metro Saturday began its trial run on the 6.17 km long Yamuna Bank-Anand Vihar route in the eastern part of the capital. The route is expected to be used by at least 100,000 passengers every day.

The route is expected to open for public by the end of this month or early next month, said an official of the Delhi Metro Rail Corp (DMRC).

The trial run was between the Lakshmi Nagar and Preet Vihar stations early in the day. "The trains will run up to Preet Vihar for some days before the trial runs are extended till the Anand Vihar station."

The Anand Vihar Metro Station has been planned as a major integrating terminal that will bring together three modes of public transport - Metro, Indian Railways and the Inter-State Bus Terminus (ISBT).

Original Article sourced from http://www.prokerala.com/news/articles/a99809.html

Work begins on multi-level parking project at KG Marg

Friday , Dec 11, 2009

Kasturba Gandhi Marg near Connaught Place, home to 19-odd skyscrapers, sees a high number of cars requiring parking space every day.

Most of the buildings were built decades ago, when nobody predicted the vehicle boom. Today, the parking problem has become acute.

Now, with work beginning on the proposed automated multi-level parking project in the area on Monday, vehicle owners can breathe easy. After completion, the 6,219-sq ft parking lot will be able to hold 1,582 cars.

The construction, which began after a prolonged delay, will be over in 18 months. But the building will miss the Commonwealth Games deadline — contrary to the assurance given by the New Delhi Municipal Council (NDMC) when the project was launched in 2007. DS Construction Limited is in charge of the project.

Temporary offices of the project team have been set up and material for the construction is being procured.

Being raised at a prime location, the building will be accessible from Tolstoy Road, KG Marg and Barakhamba Road and will provide parking solutions to the HT Building, the American Center and Antriksh Bhawan, which stand directly in front.

"The building will have three basements and 13 floors. Once a car is placed on the platform, a computer command will indicate where to deposit the vehicle. The process will take about three minutes," said an NDMC official. The technology will be imported from Germany and 400 cars can be parked in an hour. To make optimum use of land, the building will be triangular and have attractive glass exteriors .

The scheme was launched in 2007 along with two other automated parkings — in Sarojini Nagar and BKS Marg, which are being executed by the DLF. While work on those began a couple of months ago, this project had to wait for clearances.

Original Article sourced from http://www.indianexpress.com/news/work-begins-on-multilevel-parking-project-at-kg-marg/552754/0

DIMTS starting facility to rent bikes

Thursday , Dec 10, 2009 

From Monday, those living around or visiting the Bus Rapid Transit (BRT) corridor in south Delhi will be able to rent bicycles to travel around the colonies. Delhi Integrated Multi Modal Transit System (DIMTS) is starting a facility to rent bikes at five locations on the operational part of the corridor between Ambedkar Nagar and Moolchand, from where cycles will be available at a nominal rent of Rs 10 for four hours. 

The cycle stations are coming up at Siri Fort crossing, Andrews Ganj, Sheikh Sarai, Chirag Dilli and Ambedkar Nagar. At each of the stations, about 10 cycles will be available, but the number might be increased according to the demand. Those interested will need to come with an original ID proof (any one issued by the government) and a passport size photograph which will be kept as security. "An additional fee of Rs 5 will be asked for along with the rent. The commuters will also have the option of renting a cycle from one station and depositing it at another,'' said Col Ashok Kumar Singh, GM (Operations), DIMTS. 

All the cycle stations will also double up as parking facilities for bikes. So if you live in Greater Kailash, you can cycle upto the nearest station, leave your bike to take a bus or metro, complete your chores and return home on the cycle again. The idea is to provide a fast, economical and eco-friendly feeder service to the BRT corridor, which also has the Metro coming up on it near Jangpura, Defence Colony and Moolchand. DIMTS is planning to tie-up with the malls in Saket and LSR college to make similar cycle stations there as well where people can park their bikes. 

Even before the service has kicked off, the enquiries have already begun. "Lots of people stop at the stand after seeing the cycles and enquire about the facility. I have also had people wanting to rent the cycles. But that will only start from Monday,'' said Suraj Kumar, a security guard manning the station near Siri Fort crossing. Seeing the response, DIMTS is already planning to extend the facility to other BRT stretches even as it hasn't become operational yet. 

A spokesperson added: "On Sundays, from 9am to 11.30am, people will be allowed to rent and cycle on the track purely for pleasure. Marshals will be deployed at the corridor for their safety, comfort and convenience. In a month's time, we plan to tie up with one school every month to conduct cycle training sessions for schoolchildren to encourage cycling.''

Original Article sourced from http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/city/delhi/DIMTS-starting-facility-to-rent-bikes/articleshow/5320449.cms

MCD to raze school, build it again

Friday , Dec 04, 2009

A primary school building of Municipal Corporation of Delhi (MCD) in Rajouri Garden Extension will be razed to give way to a parking site. And then the building will be re-constructed while students attend classes elsewhere. The project will cost Rs 35 crore and if MCD is to be believed, there will be more such exercises in future to tide over the parking space shortage in the city.

Students from this school are being shifted to another school in the vicinity till MCD finishes construction of the multi-level parking lot, even as officials within the civic agency are raising questions about how the security of so many children will be ensured if outsiders keep entering the premises to park their cars.

Interestingly, in January this year, reacting to a TOI story, MCD had denied plans of using vacant school grounds for commercial purposes even as sources had told this newspaper back then that the civic agency had already identified 60 such schools. In a startling proof of the agency's double-speak, tenders were issued on Thursday for demolishing a functional school in Rajouri Garden Extension. The Delhi High Court, incidentally, had expressed its displeasure over the plan to put vacant school grounds to commercial use in no uncertain terms earlier this year.

The civic agency meanwhile claims that academic activities will not be disrupted and the parking lot will not pose a security threat to children studying in the school as the entry and exit to the lot will be different from that of the school.

Said press and information director, MCD, Deep Mathur: "This school was started a decade ago and is a semi-pucca structure. We will demolish the school building, make an underground parking and construct a multi-storeyed school over it. The students will be sent to another MCD primary school in the area while the construction is going on. We will ensure that the parking lot does not disturb the functioning of the school and does not pose a security problem.'' Many MCD schools are still functioning from tents even though MCD allocates a budget for building permanent structures every year.

A community hall in Subhash Nagar will also be demolished to give way to a parking site and a new hall will be made over it. The project will cost Rs 31 crore. Both the projects will take 18 months to be completed.

The civic agency is now planning to take up similar parking projects in other areas. Said leader of the House Subhash Arya: "We will look into making similar parking sites in other areas if it is required. In Rajouri Garden Extension, there is absolutely no other space where parking provisions can be made. And the situation is really bad. One obviously cannot park on the road and too many times there are fights over parking space.'' According to MCD officials, area councillors have been one of the strongest forces behind pushing through the plan of constructing a parking lot below the school building.

Original news source http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/city/delhi/MCD-to-raze-school-build-it-again/articleshow/5297610.cms