Coordinates: 13°05′32″N 80°17′33″E / 13.09233°N 80.29251°E / 13.09233; 80.29251
The Mass Rapid Transit System ( MRTS ) is an elevated line of the suburban railway in Chennai, India. The line currently runs from Chennai Beach to Velachery, covering a distance of 25 km with 21 stations. Like the rest of the suburban railway network, the MRTS is operated by the state-owned Southern Railway (SR), a zone of Indian Railways.
History
Chennai, India's fourth-largest urban agglomeration, has a well-established suburban railway network, which dates back to 1931, when services began on the metre-gauge line from Beach to Tambaram. Two more suburban services were begun in 1985—Chennai Central to Arakkonam and Chennai Central to Gummidipoondi, both of which were broad-gauge services.
In the 1980s, the government began planning for a new railway line inside the city. The Suburban Lines offered no connectivity to Central and South Madras (as Chennai was known then). Planning began in 1985 and construction was started in 1991 . The first phase was much delayed and finally opened in 1997. The section of the line encompassing the first three Stations—Beach, Fort and Park Town, is at grade; after Park Town it begins climbing. All the Stations after Park Town—Chintadripet, Chepauk, Tiruvallikeni, Lighthouse and Thirumaylai are elevated. The Line from Park Town to Thirumaylai follows the course of the Buckingham Canal, which runs parallel to the Coromandel Coast.
The second phase of the MRTS connects Thirumaylai to Velachery, a southern suburb. Till Perungudi station all the stations are elevated. One of the main stations in this stretch is Thiruvanmiyur Station, which is just across from Tidel Park. The elevated track between Thiruvanmiyur and Velachery was opened to public by the Tamil Nadu Chief Minister Mr. M Karunanidhi on November 19, 2007.
Design
Each MRTS Station is designed by a different architect and is built to accommodate a full-length EMU (Electric Multiple Unit) rake, possibly consisting of 9 or 12 cars. Currently six-car and nine-car rakes are run on the line, as the traffic on the MRTS Line is considerably less than the three Suburban Lines, where nine and twelve-car rakes run daily. Though the headway is expected once the patronage increases steadily. The MRTS runs from Beach to Velachery in about 40 minutes (compared to 2 hours by road in peak hours for the same distance). The first train from Beach starts at 4:15 am and the last starts at 9:35 pm. In reverse the first train from Velachery starts at 5:00 am and runs till 10.20 pm. MRTS runs a total of 62 pairs (Up and Down) of train on a daily basis on weekdays. But on Sundays it is considerably less. The trains run on the MRTS are 'normal' EMUs, and do not have automatic doors like a Metro train. This is because the MRTS is considered to be an elevated extension of the Suburban Network and not a Metro System, as such. However, the MRTS can be considered a Metro, since it is elevated for the majority of its length, and its services are exclusive, i.e. no other trains run on the MRTS Line.
Corridors
Corridor 1: Chennai Beach — St. Thomas Mount
Corridor 2: Thiruvanmiyur — MamallapuramIt has been proposed to extend the MRTS corridor from Thiruvanmiyur to Mamallapuram
Corridor 1: Chennai Beach — St. Thomas Mount
Phases
0 Chennai Beach Rajaji Salai 1.8 Chennai Fort Muthuswamy Road 2.64 Parktown Pallavan Salai Cooum River 3.53 Chintadripet 5.10 Chepauk 5.84 Thiruvallikeni 7.05 Lighthouse Mundakanniamman Koil 8.73 Thirumayilai 9.77 Mandaveli 11.09 Greenways Road Adyar River 11.96 Kotturpuram 12.89 Kasturibai Nagar 13.86 Indira Nagar 14.72 Thiruvanmiyur 16.64 Taramani 17.78 Perungudi 19.41 Velachery Puzhuthivakkam Adambakkam 24.715 St.Thomas Mount The project involves three phases, of which Phase I and Phase II are completed. Phase II extension is under construction.
source:CMDA
Phase II extension
Work on the 3 km, three-station Phase II extension from Velachery to St. Thomas Mount started in 2008, for completion by December 2010. The cost of the project is estimated at Rs. 495.7 crore. However, one of the prime contractors is Maytas Infra, a subsidiary of the troubled Satyam, and Southern Railway has expressed its concern about an apparent halt in work since last 2008.
Phase III and beyond
The planned route for the MRTS will see it turn north after St Thomas Mount and touch the Suburban Line to Arakkonam at Villivakkam before continuing further North East and eventually going down to Grade, i.e. surface level again and merging with the Suburban Line to Gummidipoondi at Tondiarpet.
Gallery
Station Models
MRTS Stations
Misc.
See also
- List of Chennai MRTS stations
- Chennai Suburban Railway
References
- ^ http://www.hindu.com/2009/11/21/stories/2009112160930400.htm
- ^ http://www.cmdachennai.gov.in/Volume1_English_PDF/Vol1_Chapter04_Transport.pdf
- ^ http://www.hindu.com/2008/02/27/stories/2008022759130400.htm
- ^ http://www.maalaimalar.com/asp/news/dis_news_article.asp?artid=307749
External links
- Official Timetable of MRTS, Chennai
- Network map
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