Mumbai Metro Rail Corporation Limited (MMRCL) successfully conducted trail run of the first trainset delivered by Alstom for the Mumbai's Colaba-Bandra-Seepz Metro line 3 (Aqua Line). It is the city's first metro project that can run driverless having 75 per cent motorisation, making operations efficient. It is also the city's first fully underground metro project.
The metro trainset was flagged off for trial runs by CM of Maharashtra, Eknath Shinde and Deputy CM, Maharashtra, Devendra Fadnavis, along with Ashwini Bhide, Managing Director, MMRC. The metro trainset ran a three-kilometre stretch from Sariput Nagar, Aarey, to Marol Naka for the inaugural trial run.
Alstom is indigenously designing, manufacturing, and commissioning 31 lightweight, fully furnished modern passenger train sets of eight cars each (248 metro cars) for the 33.5-km long underground stretch of Mumbai Metro Line 3. This is the biggest rolling stock contract in India's urban mobility sector for the company, valued at approximately €315 million. Making it an easy travel for Mumbaikars, these metro trains are estimated to reduce 35 per cent of overall traffic and help in reducing air & noise pollution.
With a proven track record, low lifecycle costs and keen focus on passenger experience, Alstom's Metropolis trainsets set the standard in energy-efficient, and safe operations. Themed on ‘Dynamic Fluidism' that takes inspiration from the city, these trains prioritise high interior density layout to maximise space efficiency, enabling each trainset to carry 3,000 passengers per trip. These metro trains are a testament to the company's superior eco-design principle, with 96 per cent of the mass of materials and components used being recyclable, and 99 per cent recoverable.
Mumbai Metro Line 3 will connect Cuffe Parade business district in the extreme south of the city to Seepz in the north-central with 26 underground and one street-level station. Alstom is also equipping this line with the latest generation of CBTC signalling technology (Urbalis 400). This is Alstom's proprietary technology that results in increasing average capacity by 30 per cent in manned services and unattended train operations (UTO) and helps reduce energy consumption by 30 per cent.
