TBM Staff - Mumbai
The North Central Railway has proposed a 60 km railway line connecting Noida International Airport with major routes to Howrah, Chennai, and Mumbai. The new line will have junctions at Chola and Rundhi, merging with the Delhi-Howrah line and extending to the Delhi-Chennai/Mumbai route, respectively.
The proposed tracks will be linked to the airport’s ground transportation centre through an underground channel, enabling trains to move in different directions. The railways are likely to submit a detailed project report once the airport concessionaire, Yamuna International Airport Ltd (YIAPL), is ready with its design for other connectivity modes such as rapid rail.
Arun Vir Singh, CEO, Noida International Airport Ltd, stated that the railways sought details about the rapid rail line connecting the airport with Ghaziabad station and the tracks planned inside the airport’s ground transportation centre. Once YIAPL submits its report, the railways will file its detailed project report, initiating the construction process.
The proposed railway line will have minimal impact on existing structures and human settlements. The total length of the route, including additional connectivity tracks, will be almost 99 km, costing around INR 2,400 crore and taking three years to complete. The route will include stations at Rundhi, Chandhat, Jewar Khadar, Airport, Jahangirpur, Bighapur, and Chola, catering to a population of over 1.2 lakh initially.
The project will include five railway flyovers, 45 minor road crossings, and a significant bridge spanning the Yamuna. The alignment is designed to avoid built-up areas, minimise land acquisition difficulties, and avoid interfering with the Eastern Peripheral Expressway.
The airport station will be integrated with the terminal building for easy passenger transfer. The alignment will also facilitate connectivity with key locations, including the multimodal transport hub near Dadri. Trains from Agra, New Delhi via Faridabad and Ghaziabad are likely to run on the route, with the possibility of fast trains like Vande Bharat operating from stations like New Delhi, Agra, Kanpur, and Lucknow.
The UP government’s proposal to connect the Noida airport with existing lines at Palwal and Chola stations was approved by the railways last year. The eastern freight corridor, stretching from Kolkata to Amritsar, passes through the eastern side of the airport, with Chola railway station being the nearest point along this corridor. On the western side, Palwal serves as the closest point on the Delhi-Mumbai line.
