The National Capital Region Transport Corporation (NCRTC) has achieved a major milestone in the construction of the Delhi-Ghaziabad-Meerut RRTS corridor, with the first tunnel breakthrough for the Delhi section. This breakthrough was achieved by the Tunnel Boring Machine (TBM), Sudarshan 4.1, from the tunnel retrieval shaft at Khichripur, Delhi. This RRTS tunnel is the longest tunnel in Delhi made by any TBM, measuring approximately 3km in length. The RRTS tunnels have a diameter of 6.5m, which is highly optimized for similar design speed of 180 kmph, with wider and higher rolling stock.

A total of four tunnels are being constructed in Delhi for the 82-km Delhi-Ghaziabad-Meerut RRTS corridor, for to and fro movement in both directions. Two parallel tunnels of about 3km long between Anand Vihar to Khichripur, towards New Ashok Nagar RRTS station and about 2km long parallel tunnels from Anand Vihar to Vaishali, towards Sahibabad RRTS station are being constructed.

The other TBMs, Sudarshan 4.2, 4.3, and 4.4, are boring tunnels in the direction of Sahibabad from Anand Vihar and have completed construction of more than 1.5km and 1km, respectively. The NCRTC has prioritized commuters’ convenience over ease of construction. The Sarai Kale Khan and Anand Vihar RRTS stations are examples of extensive multi-modal integration which will enable seamless transfers to stations of Indian Railways, ISBTs, city buses as well as Metro.

In order to construct this 3km-long RRTS tunnel, more than 14,000 high-precision precast tunnel segments have been used, which will ensure a long tunnel life. The tunnel segments of Delhi section are being casted at NCRTC’s casting yard established at Karkardooma, Delhi. The NCRTC is aiming to commission the entire 82km-long Delhi-Ghaziabad-Meerut RRTS for the public by 2025, and it will operationalize a 17-km-long priority section between Sahibabad and Duhai shortly, before the scheduled time.