New Delhi: The Kalkaji Mandir-Botanical Garden corridor of the Delhi Metro Rail Corporation (DMRC) will reduce travel time between Noida and south Delhi, as it has transformed into first interchange station of the National Capital Region (NCR).
The section is ready for operations and awaiting clearance from the Metro Rail Safety Commissioner, the Delhi Metro said on Tuesday.
Currently on the Blue Line (Dwarka Sector 21-Noida City Centre), Botanical Garden station will now perform as a junction between Yellow and the upcoming Magenta Line (Janakpuri West-Botanical Garden).
Built under the Phase-3 of Delhi Metro construction, the Botanical Garden-Kalkaji Mandir corridor of the Magenta Line is "expected to be commissioned soon", the transporter said.
"This Metro station will connect Noida directly with important locations of south Delhi such as Nehru Place, Kalkaji, etc. Passengers travelling from Noida to Faridabad will now be able to change trains at Kalkaji Mandir and go directly to Faridabad. Since both Botanical Garden and Kalkaji Mandir are interchange stations, there will be significant reduction in travelling time between various destinations, especially those on the Blue and Violet lines," DMRC said in a statement.
Once operational, Kalkaji will be an interchange station between Magenta and Violet Line (Escorts Mujesar-Kashmere Gate).
"The projected interchange load of the new station as per the Detailed Project Report will be 97,780. In 2021, the number is expected to increase to 123,020. The Botanical Garden Metro has a total parking area of about 1,420 sq. mtrs," the statement added.
The corridor will comprise of nine stations. Apart from Kalkaji Mandir, all other stations will be elevated.
After the subsequent extension of the Magenta line from Kalkaji Mandir to Janakpuri West in the near future, the travelling time between Noida and Gurugram will come down by about half an hour to a total of 50 minutes with interchange at Hauz Khas. Presently, a journey from HUDA City Centre to Botanical Garden takes about 90 minutes.
The official also added that Noida will also get directly connected with the domestic terminals of the Indira Gandhi International Airport for the first time. The journey from the Botanical Garden to the domestic terminal will take about 40 minutes.
With another feather, the travel time between Noida Sector 18 and NHPC Faridabad, which takes about 58 minutes (with an interchange at Mandi House station on Violet Line), will be reduced to 36 minutes if one changes at Kalkaji station from Magenta to Violet Line.