Driverless operations on the Delhi Metro’s Pink Line were launched on Thursday, with Union Housing and Urban Affairs Minister Hardeep Singh Puri and Delhi Transport Minister Kailash Gahlot flagging off the train at a virtual ceremony.
The Pink Line became the second Delhi Metro line to have driverless operations after the Magenta Line.
Mr. Puri said it was a historic occasion where the Delhi Metro became one of the world’s largest networks of driverless metros, with a total of 96.7 km of automated train lines. He said the Delhi Metro’s driverless network was the fourth largest in the world.
Housing and Urban Affairs secretary Durga Shanker Mishra said the Pink Line from Majlis Park to Shiv Vihar was an important line that connected the north and south of the city. He said operations would be streamlined as the drivers would not have to wake up early to start Metro operations.
“The driverless train operation will bring more flexibility in train operations, reduce human interventions and human errors. It will also help in improving the availability of coaches for service. The driverless trains will eliminate the manual process of checking done before induction, subsequently reducing burden on train operators…The DMRC has already started reaping benefits of driverless operations on its Magenta Line in terms of increased availability of coaches for service,” the Ministry said in a statement. Since automated tests are carried out every morning, the trains had become more reliable, it said.
“In driverless train operations, initially, the train operator will be present in the train to instil a sense of confidence and assistance,” the Ministry said.
The first stretch of driverless operations on the Magenta Line was opened on December 28 last year by Prime Minister Narendra Modi.
