Kolkata Metro Overcomes Bowbazar Tunneling Crisis: Signalling Work Begins On East-West Corridor Connecting Sealdah And Esplanade

The Communications-Based Train Control (CBTC) signalling work for the entire Howrah Maidan to Sector V stretch of Kolkata Metro’s East-West Metro began on Sunday (12 January), marking a significant step towards connecting two of Eastern Railway’s busiest stations, Howrah and Sealdah.

An official from Kolkata Metro Rail Corporation Ltd (KMRCL) stated, “We have finally mitigated the challenges posed by the Bowbazar tunnelling crisis and successfully connected Sealdah and Esplanade Metro stations. The electrical works related to the aluminium third rail are also nearing completion, and the electrical inspector has been approached for the statutory EIG inspection of the third rail before it is charged.”

The CBTC signalling system, commissioned for the Green Line, is the first of its kind in Kolkata Metro. A Metro Railway engineer explained, “The Green Line of Metro Railway, Kolkata, is the first corridor where the CBTC signalling system has been commissioned for safe and automatic train operations.”

The system will allow trains to operate in Automatic Train Operation (ATO) mode, with all rakes communicating their position, speed, acceleration, and deceleration.

The CBTC system is also capable of enabling a 90-second headway, as seen in metros in London and Moscow. The East-West Metro, also known as the Green Line, will provide significant relief to daily commuters by saving around 90 minutes for those travelling between Howrah and Sealdah.

Currently, the metro service operates in two parts, with a missing link between Sealdah and Esplanade due to the Bowbazar cave-in, which was resolved last December.

To ensure the system’s reliability, KMRCL has conducted over 1,000 trials on Green Line 1’s 5-km stretch. The official stated, “KMRCL plans to conduct similar trials across the entire stretch with the revised software. To obtain approval, KMRCL must ensure a 100 percent foolproof system.”

Once the safety and reliability of the signalling system are confirmed, the entire installed system will be submitted to an Independent Safety Assessor (ISA) for certification before commercial use can commence.