Bengaluru Metro Rail Corporation Limited conducts trial run on Purple line

Bengaluru: The Bengaluru Metro Rail Corporation Limited (BMRCL) on began trial run on the western extension of Purple Line between Mysuru Road and Kengeri section on Tuesday. This is the extension of the existing Purple Line of the Namma Metro connecting Mysuru Road (Nayandahalli metro station) to Kengeri in the city.

In December 2020, BMRCL said in a statement that Kengeri residents would be able to take a ride on the metro as early as in 2021. This is after the 7.5 km Mysuru Road-Kengeri metro corridor extension on the metro's Purple Line is completed.

According to the reports, this section has completed the civil work, a round of testing is now being conducted before the line is made operational by June 2021. Trains were run at slow speeds on Tuesday morning to test the line, particularly its side gaps. This section of the Bengaluru metro is set to be operational in two months and would cater to the needs of as many as 75,000 commuters a day.

"This development in the city's southwest part will improve the connectivity between areas like Nayandanahalli and Kengeri in the central areas in Bengaluru," says experts.

This elevated section of the Namma Metro will have seven metro stations -- Nayandahalli, Rajarajeshwari Nagar, Jnanabharathi, Pattanagere, Mailasandra and Kengeri bus terminal and Challaghatta. Currently, the Purple Line goes from Baiyappanahalli to Mysuru Road. While it will be extended to Challaghatta from Mysuru Road, the Baiyappanahalli station will be linked to the upcoming Whitefield metro station reportedly set to complete in 2022.

Last month, the Bengaluru metro line connecting the Nadaprabhu Kempegowda station in Majestic and Mysuru road was suspended for a week from March 21 to 28. This was in connection with the Kengeri metro line and modification of the signalling system in the Magadi Road-Mysore Road section. Another section in Challaghatta will be operational in 2023.

The green line of the metro connects Nagasandra in the northwest part of the city to Silk Institute in the south.