Sreedharan threatens take over of Airport Express Metro

New Delhi, Dec 9 (PTI) Delhi Metro today threatened take over of the Indian capital city's Airport Metro Express corridor operated by the private sector Reliance Infrastructure if it fails to improve on train speed and frequency and reduce check-in time for fliers. "If they (Reliance Infrastructure) don't improve, then we will have to think of even terminating the arrangements. We can take over and there is a provision for taking over (in the agreement)," Delhi Metro Managing Director E Sreedharan told PTI in an interview. Sreedharan, who will demit office on December 31 after an eventful 16-year-tenure as Delhi Metro chief, said the organisation will wait for another three to four months for the operator to improve on the aspects raised by Delhi Metro. He said Delhi Metro's PPP (public private partnership) experience was not very pleasant with the Airport model. Reliance Infra is operating the corridor on a 30-year lease. "First of all, the works were not completed on time. The line was supposed to be ready for (the 2010) Commonwealth Games but it got delayed by five months. Even after opening, they have not been able to increase the speed to (the promised speed of) 120 kmph," he said. He pointed out several deficiencies like the train speed still being maintained at 105 kmph, the proposed frequency of 10 minutes not being implemented and two-hour check-in time for fliers who use the corridor which have to be corrected. The Airport Express Line that takes passengers from New Delhi's central business district of Connaught Place to the International Airport covering a distance of 23 kms in 18 minutes, is the first Metro project to be implemented under PPP. The country's iconic 'Metro Man', who revolutionised the way of travel in Delhi through the Metro, said he had a meeting with the top brass of Reliance Infra couple of days back and told them to improve on a dozen areas. He said the Delhi Metro is a "little soft" with Reliance Infra because the ridership is low and the operator was making "a lot of loses". "We don't want to rub," he said. Contending that the corridor has not been able to attract many passengers even eight months after it became operational, he said the line should be carrying at least 30,000 to 40,000 passengers a day. The current ridership is around 20,000. "They have to attract passengers to make it viable," he said, adding that Public Private Partnership projects have never been successful. PTI