New Delhi: With the commencement of 'driverless new-generation trains', the Delhi Metro Rail Corporation Limited (DMRC) will enter the elite league of "seven per cent of world's Metro networks" which can operate services without drivers.
After starting driverless services on the 37-km Magenta Line (Janakpuri West Botanical Garden), another major corridor of the Delhi Metro, 57-km Pink Line (Majlis Park Shiv Vihar) will also have driverless operations by mid-2021, the DMRC said in a statement on Sunday.
According to the metro operator, the driverless train will not only saves money but also proves to be an error-free operation as it has the least human intervention.
"The driverless trains will be fully automated which will require minimum human intervention and will eliminate the possibilities of human errors. Delhi Metro has been a pioneer in introducing technology-driven solutions for passenger comfort and this is another step in the same direction," the statement said.
Once the driverless trains are operationalised on the Pink Link too, the Delhi Metro will have a driverless network length of about 94 km which will be approximately nine percent of the world's total driverless metro network, it added.
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Driven by cutting-edge technology, the Delhi Metro Rail Corporation had been conducting various trials for its new 'driverless trains', whose flagging off will be a major technological milestone for the DMRC and the country.
Although, initially drivers will be deputed for operating the trains they would be gradually withdrawn to move to Unattended Train Operation (UTO).
Delhi Metro had begun its commercial operation on December 25, 2002, a day after the then prime minister Atal Bihari Vajpayee had inaugurated DMRC's first stretch, spanning 8.2 km from Shahdara to Tis Hazari, with just six stations.
The driverless train having six coaches is equipped with several advanced features.
The Delhi Metro had resumed services with curtailed operation on the Yellow Line from September 7 after being closed for over five months due to coronavirus pandemic.
The Delhi Metro's currently operational network spans about 390 km with 285 stations across 11 corridors (including NOIDA Greater NOIDA line). On regular days, the average daily ridership of the Delhi Metro is over 26 lakh.
(With inputs from agencies)
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