Reliance Infra-led Delhi Airport Metro Express has been suffering loses as it was not able to reach its intended targets in terms of profit and ridership New Delhi: Reliance Infrastructure-led Delhi Airport Metro Express will close down from Sunday for an unspecified period apparently due to technical problems and financial losses, a move that would affects hundreds of passengers who were relying on this corridor to reach the airport without any hassles, reports PTI. The country's first Public-Private-Partnership Metro project has had a tumultuous journey in the past 16 months after it first began operations in February 2011. "The Delhi Metro has received a communication from the concessionaire this evening that they intend to stop services from Sunday," Delhi Metro spokesman Anuj Dayal said. However, he did not give any reason why the Reliance Infrastructure took the extreme step of closing down the Metro services for an unspecified period. The Reliance Infra-led company has been suffering loses as it was not able to reach its intended targets in terms of profit and ridership. However, there was no word from the concessionaire. Efforts made by PTI to reach Reliance Infra officials failed. It is understood that the company would come out with a public notice on Saturday, specifying reasons for its step. Dayal said the Delhi Metro would be asking them to intimate the date by which they would be resuming services after carrying out the rectifications required on the line. The Line has also been encountering several technical problems and was not able to run trains at the promised speed of 120 kmph. While it was run at 105 kmph in the beginning, the speed was brought down to 90 kmph due to some technical issues a few months back. The high-speed Metro corridor, the country's first Public-Private-Partnership Metro network, connects the city centre of Connaught Place with the swanky Terminal-3 of the Indira Gandhi International Airport in just 18 minutes. The Airport Express Metro currently has a ridership of over 15,000 passengers a day and is popular among thousands of fliers who used the Metro to reach the airport and nearby areas without any hassles. Ever since the Airport Metro was opened to public, the Delhi Metro has been very vocal in criticising it and its former chief E Sreedharan had once even threatened to take over the Line if the Reliance Infra did not improve on a number of aspects within a limited period. The Airport Metro was not able to attract the number of commuters it intended to in the past one year and thus suffered losses. During an interaction with media in May, Delhi Metro chief Mangu Singh said the Delhi Metro was not happy with the performance of the Airport Express as it feels that the network is being run in a "commercial manner". "Yes, there are many shortcomings and they are not up to our expectations and there is no doubt about that. But there is recession and their business model is really not working," he had said. The Airport Express Corridor, that connects New Delhi with the IGI Airport, is mainly based on property development, real estate and retail. http://www.moneylife.in/article/delhi-airport-metro-to-close-from-sunday/26840.html
I would love to know what went through your mind when you thought this kind of news was relevant to a bunch of middled aged SUV driving Texans.
Lol if there can be a thread on a Tollywood movie, there can be a thread on the Delhi Metro . Plus you'd be surprised how many south Asians are n clutchfans.
Just saying where else in the world would a transit system get shut down out of the blue. It's pathetic.
It's the line that goes from the airport. Very annoying to travelers. Going around that city without Metro is a pain.
