A | B | C | D | E | F | G | H | CH | I | J | K | L | M | N | O | P | Q | R | S | T | U | V | W | X | Y | Z | 0 | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9
| Delhi Metro | |||
|---|---|---|---|
 | |||
 A Yellow Line train at Patel Chowk metro station | |||
| Overview | |||
| Owner | Delhi Metro Rail Corporation | ||
| Locale | National Capital Region (NCR) | ||
| Transit type | Rapid transit | ||
| Number of lines | 10[1] | ||
| Line number | |||
| Number of stations | 256[a] | ||
| Daily ridership | 46.26 lakh (4.62 million, 2022–23)[2] | ||
| Annual ridership | 203 crore (2.03 billion, 2023)[b][3] | ||
| Key people | Manoj Joshi (Chairman) Vikas Kumar (Managing Director)[4] | ||
| Headquarters | Metro Bhawan, Barakhamba Road, New Delhi - 110001 | ||
| Website | delhimetrorail.com | ||
| Operation | |||
| Began operation | 24 December 2002 | ||
| Operator(s) | Delhi Metro Rail Corporation | ||
| Number of vehicles | 336 trains[5] | ||
| Train length | 6/8 coaches[6] | ||
| Headway | 3 minutes | ||
| Technical | |||
| System length | 350.42 km (217.74 mi)[c] | ||
| Track gauge |
| ||
| Electrification | 25 kV 50 Hz AC overhead catenary | ||
| Average speed | 45 km/h[7][8] | ||
| Top speed | 120 km/h[9][8] | ||
| |||
The Delhi Metro is a mass rapid transit system which serves Delhi and its adjoining satellite cities, such as Ghaziabad, Faridabad, Gurugram, Noida and Bahadurgarh, in the National Capital Region of India.[10] The system consists of 10 colour-coded lines[1] serving 256 stations,[a] with a total length of 350.42 kilometres (217.74 mi).[c] It is India's largest and busiest metro rail system and the second-oldest, after the Kolkata Metro. The metro has a mix of underground, at-grade, and elevated stations using broad-gauge and standard-gauge tracks. The metro makes over 4,300 trips daily.[12]
Construction began in 1998, and the first elevated section (Shahdara to Tis Hazari) on the Red Line opened on 25 December 2002. The first underground section (Vishwa Vidyalaya – Kashmere Gate) on the Yellow Line opened on 20 December 2004.[13] The network was developed in phases. Phase I (three lines) was completed by 2006, and Phase II in 2011. Phase III was mostly complete in 2021, except for a small extension of the Airport Line which opened in 2023.[14] Construction of Phase IV began on 30 December 2019.[15]
Delhi Metro Rail Corporation (DMRC), a company with funding from the governments of India and Delhi, built and operates the Delhi Metro.[16][17] The DMRC was certified by the United Nations in 2011 as the first metro rail and rail-based system in the world to receive carbon credits for reducing greenhouse-gas emissions, reducing annual carbon emission levels in the city by 630,000 tonnes.[6]
The Delhi Metro has interchanges with the Rapid Metro Gurgaon (with a shared ticketing system) and Noida Metro. On 22 October 2019, DMRC took over operations of the financially-troubled Rapid Metro Gurgaon.[18] The Delhi Metro's annual ridership was 203.23 crore (2.03 billion) in 2023.[b][19][20] The system will have interchanges with the Delhi-Meerut RRTS, India's fastest urban regional transit system.[21][22]
History
Background
The concept of mass rapid transit for New Delhi first emerged from a 1969 traffic and travel characteristics study in the city.[23] Over the next several years, committees in a number of government departments were commissioned to examine issues related to technology, route alignment, and governmental jurisdiction.[23] In 1984, the Urban Arts Commission proposed the development of a multi-modal transport system which would build three underground mass rapid transit corridors and augmenting the city's suburban railway and road transport networks.[24]
The city expanded significantly while technical studies and financing the project were in progress, doubling its population and increasing the number of vehicles five-fold between 1981 and 1998.[24] Traffic congestion and pollution soared as an increasing number of commuters used private vehicles, and the existing bus system was unable to bear the load.[23] A 1992 attempt to privatize the bus transport system compounded the problem, with inexperienced operators plying poorly-maintained, noisy and polluting buses on lengthy routes; this resulted in long waiting times, unreliable service, overcrowding, unqualified drivers, speeding and reckless driving[25] which led to road accidents. The government of India under Prime Minister H.D. Deve Gowda[26] and the government of Delhi set up the Delhi Metro Rail Corporation (DMRC) on 3 May 1995, with Elattuvalapil Sreedharan its managing director.[27] Mangu Singh replaced Sreedharan as DMRC managing director on 31 December 2011.[28]
Initial construction
When the project was originally approved by the Union Cabinet in September 1996, it had three corridors. In 1997, official development assistance loans from Japan were granted to finance and conduct the first phase of the system.[29]
Construction of the Delhi Metro began on 1 October 1998.[30] To avoid problems experienced by the Kolkata Metro, which was badly delayed and 12 times over budget due to "political meddling, technical problems and bureaucratic delays", the DMRC was created as a special-purpose vehicle vested with autonomy and power to execute the large project which involved many technical complexities in a difficult urban environment within a limited time frame. Putting the central and state governments on an equal footing gave an unprecedented level of autonomy and freedom to the company, which had full powers to hire people, decide on tenders, and control funds.[31][32] The DMRC hired the Hong Kong MTRC as a technical consultant on rapid-transit operation and construction techniques.[33] Construction proceeded smoothly except for a major disagreement in 2000, when the Ministry of Railways forced the system to use 5 ft 6 in (1,676 mm) broad gauge despite the DMRC's preference for standard gauge.[34] This decision led to an additional capital expenditure of ₹260 crore (US$31 million).[35][36]
The Delhi Metro's first line, the Red Line, was inaugurated by Prime Minister Atal Bihari Vajpayee on 24 December 2002.[37] The metro became India's second underground rapid transit system, after the Kolkata Metro, when the Vishwa Vidyalaya–Kashmere Gate section of the Yellow Line opened on 20 December 2004. The underground line was inaugurated by Prime Minister Manmohan Singh. The project's first phase was completed in 2006,[38][39] on budget and almost three years ahead of schedule, an achievement described by Business Week as "nothing short of a miracle".[40]
Phase I
A 64.75-kilometer (40.23-mile)-long network of 59 stations was constructed in Delhi, encompassing the initial sections of the Red, Yellow, and Blue Lines. The stations were opened to the public between 25 December 2002 and 11 November 2006.
| Phase 1 Network[41][1] | ||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| No. | Line | Stations | Length (km) | Terminals | Opening date[42] | |
| 1 | Red Line | 6 | 8.35 | Shahdara | Tis Hazari | 25 December 2002[43] |
| 4 | 4.87 | Tis Hazari | Inderlok | 3 October 2003[43] | ||
| 8 | 8.84 | Inderlok | Rithala | 31 March 2004[43] | ||
| 2 | Yellow Line | 4 | 4.06 | Vishwa Vidyalaya | Kashmere Gate | 20 December 2004[43] |
| 6 | 6.62 | Kashmere Gate | Central Secretariat | 3 July 2005[44] | ||
| 3 | Blue Line | 22 | 22.74 | Dwarka | Barakhamba Road | 31 December 2005[45] |
| 6 | 6.47 | Dwarka Sector 9 | 1 April 2006[43] | |||
| 3 | 2.80 | Barakhamba Road | Indraprastha | 11 November 2006[46] | ||
| Total | 59 | 64.75 | ||||
Phase II
A total of 123.3-kilometre-long (76.6 mi) network of 86 stations and 10 routes and extensions was built. Seven routes were extensions of the Phase I network, three were new colour-coded lines, and three routes connect to other cities (the Yellow Line to Gurgaon and the Blue Line to Noida and Ghaziabad) of the national capital region in the states of Haryana and Uttar Pradesh. At the end of Phases I and II, the network's total length was 188.05 km (116.85 mi) and 145 stations became operational between 4 June 2008 and 27 August 2011.[6]