India's 1st underwater metro set to run under Hooghly river in Kolkata

New Delhi: Years ago, the bustling city of Kolkata became the first city to have a Metro rail network. Now, another first awaits the city.
India’s first underwater metro is set to roll out under the Hooghly river in Kolkata soon.

The underwater tunnel through which the metro will ply is a state-of-the-art marvel, designed and constructed on lines of European models.

The 520-meters long tunnel is being built by Indian Railways and Kolkata Metro Rail Corporation Ltd (KMRCL). inside Hooghly river.
The foundation of the project was laid in 2009 and is likely to be completed by 2019. The underwater train will connect Howrah and Mahakarn railway stations.

This tunnel is reportedly being built 30 meters below the riverbed and commuters will be under the river for only about a minute.
Notably, the master plan of the East-West Corridor was identified in 1971. However, the sanction of the project only came through in 2008, after the success of the Delhi metro network came to light.

Europe-styled underwater tunnel: key facts
1. Kolkata East-West Metro line is 16.6-km long. The project will be completed by 2021. A senior Railway official told PTI it would ferry 10 lakh (1 million) passengers per day by 2035.

2. The Kolkata Metro East-West line will connect Howrah metro station and Mahakaran (iconic Writers’ Building) metro stations. Commuters traveling between these two stations will spend around one minute under the river. The metro train will run at a speed of 80 km per hour.

3. Out of the total 16.6 km long Kolkata Metro East-west corridor, 5.8 km section will be elevated and 10.8 km will be part of the underground corridor.

4. The underwater tunnel of Kolkata Metro will provide a unique traveling experience for commuters. It will be like traveling more than a 10 storied building below the water surface for almost half-kilometer across the Hooghly.

5. The elevated stations of Kolkata Metro East-west corridor are Sector-V station, Karunamoyee station, Central Park station, City centre station, Bengal Chemical station, Saltlake stadium station.

The post India’s 1st underwater metro set to run under Hooghly river in Kolkata appeared first on NewsroomPost.