Delhi Metro restart plan: alternate seats empty, social distancing on platforms

Delhi Metro services in the national capital region will resume after a formal directive from the Ministry of Housing and Urban Affairs as well as the Delhi government. Amid the ongoing COVID-19 lockdown, the Delhi Metro Rail Corporation (DMRC) is taking up extensive cleaning and maintenance procedures before passenger services resume.

A DMRC spokesperson told The Federal that after the decision to resume services will be given by the government, DMRC will issue a detailed protocol which is to be followed by passengers travelling in the Delhi Metro. Presently, DMRC is taking up the necessary cleaning mechanisms inside the trains and stations such as the entrance lobbies, corridors, staircases, escalators, elevators, security area etc.

In the interim, the other necessary logistical arrangements such as provision for hand sanitization, thermal screening at metro stations and the installation of social distancing related signages are also being handled. Anuj Dayal, Executive Director, Corporate Communications, DMRC said in a statement that the exhaustive cleaning and maintenance mechanism involves covering 264 metro stations, over 2200 metro coaches, over 1100 escalators, and 1000 lifts spread across the Delhi Metro network.

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Apart from this, the protocol for social distancing are being worked upon, to be followed in the Delhi Metro trains and at stations. As per protocols for public transport released by the Delhi government, social distancing norms will be followed at the Delhi Metro stations and inside trains, once metro services resume. In the lockdown, DMRC has tested all systems of the metro including electrical, signalling, rolling stock, tracks etc to ensure safety of commuters.

DMRC is working out a detailed cleaning & maintenance procedure in view of the pandemic. The exercise will be extremely exhaustive as it involves 264 stations over 2200 coaches and over 1100 escalators and 1000 lifts. Protocol for social distancing etc. are also being worked on. pic.twitter.com/Yky1raKR4P

— Delhi Metro Rail Corporation (@OfficialDMRC) May 13, 2020

The construction work of Delhi Metro Phase IV project, extension of Delhi Metro Grey Line Dwarka-Najafgarh and Delhi Metro Airport Express Line was also taken up during the lockdown. According to DMRC, the date of the opening of the Delhi Metro has still not been finalized and will be notified in due course.