The Hyderabad Metro Rail has begun trial runs of trains on the Green Corridor between Jubilee Bus station, Secunderabad and Mahatma Gandhi Bus Station / Imlibun near Gowliguda. The first trial run was flagged off yesterday in the presence of HMR MD Shri NVS Reddy.
The corridor runs through some of the busiest areas of Hyderabad which are both commercially as well as residentially important. The line is 11km long at present and will have nine stations, viz, JBS – Parade Grounds (Interchange with Blue Corridor), Secunderabad West (connecting to Secunderabad Railway station), Gandhi Hospital, Musheerabad, RTC X Rds, Chikkadpally, Narayanguda, Sultan Bazar and MGBS (Interchange with Red Corridor).
The trial runs are planned for atleast two to three weeks before the inspection by the Commissioner of Metro Rail Safety (CMRS), a statutory body under the Ministry of Civil Aviation. Apart from the smooth functioning of all technical systems on board the trains, OHE, tracks, safety and strength of the structure, the CMRS also looks into aspects of passenger convenience, emergency escapes and other facilities pertaining to the stations on the corridor.
The Chief Minister of Telangana has time and again indicated that he has wanted the line to open before the turn of the year. However, it is more likely to happen around Sankranti time at least, if not later than that.
The Green corridor has originally been planned between the JBS and Falaknuma; however the MGBS-Falaknuma section has seen a lot of opposition from the residents and businessmen of the Old city and also by the political party members of AIMIM led by its chief Shri Asaduddin Owaisi. No work has started beyond MGBS on the line, as demands for change of alignment still persist. The original alignment was to traverse past Salarjung Museum, Etebar Chowk, Charminar, Shah Ali Banda, Shamsheergunj and end at Falaknuma.
The construction of the line was delayed due to agitation by the Sultan Bazaar Traders Joint Action Committee.