Even as there is lingering curiosity over when the project will finally be operational, Hyderabad Metro Rail authorities said they were working to ensure high-level safety both in stations and on board trains. While stations will boast of security arrangements similar to airports, trains will be fitted with black boxes similar to the fight recording systems used in airplanes. A pilot project is being planned to install black boxes in two cities — Chennai, where metro services are already operational; and Hyderabad.
If the TRS government lives up to its promise of launching the service on June 2, then the city, along with Chennai, would be the first to have black boxes on metro trains.
The most advanced safety systems will be in place, both on trains and in stations. The security aspect is being dealt with separately,” said V B Gadgil, managing director of L&T Metro Rail (Hyderabad) Limited, the concessionaire for the metro project being executed under public-private partnership model. Municipal Administration and Urban Development (MA&UD) minister, KT Rama Rao discussed project-related issues at a departmental review meeting. “The minister was updated on the safety arrangements, especially since he had instructed for foolproof safety arrangements, during the ongoing construction and when operations begin, in the backdrop of the Kolkata flyover collapse (sic),” a Hyderabad Metro Rail Limited (HMRL) official said.
The black boxes on trains would function as event recorders. They will also monitor technical issues and alert the driver in the event of a technical snag. “This is in addition to the CCTV cameras to be fitted in trains,” an L&T official said.
