600 meter tunnel ready for metro from Kapodra to Central Warehouse in three months.
The construction of a metro rail project is going on in full swing in Surat. Under the Dream City Metro Rail Project Phase-1, the metro tunnel starting from Sarthana starts from Kapodra and goes to the Central Warehouse located on Varachha Road. TBM Narmada built a tunnel from Lambe Hanuman Road, Labheshwar Chowk to Central Warehouse in three months.
The line of this metro rail runs for 22.77 km from Sarthana in Surat to Dream City. Six tunnels and three stations will be built in this line by Gulemark and Sam India contractors. In December 2022, TBM Narmada started the work of building the tunnel from Kapodra to Labheshwar Chowk. The 1.5 km long tunnel was to be built in one year by December 2023.
The construction of the 600 meter long tunnel from Central Warehouse to Labheshwar Chowk started in January 2024 and is now complete. This is the second success of TBM Narmada in the 3.46 km package and second success on the line from Sarthana to Dream City.
It is noteworthy here that a diamond line is being built in Surat from Sarthana to Dream City, which goes from Kapodra to Chowkbazar. Metro Rail will run in underground tunnels on this route. In this section the metro runs in a tunnel. Metro rail will run on elevated tracks. An additional textile line for the Metro Rail will start from Antroli and reach Bhensan, which is completely clean.
Tunnel Boring Machine (TBM) Narmada operated by Gulermak, Sam India Biltwell JV completed its final breakthrough at the Central Warehouse Station on March 26, 2024, a significant achievement of the ambitious Line-1 project of Surat Metro Phase 1.
“On March 26, 2024, TBM S78 (Narmada), which arrived at the Central Warehouse Station, the third station in our project, successfully completed the breakthrough after arriving at Labheshwar Station. S78 has installed 1642 precast segment rings (a total of 2298 meters) up to this point. The remaining 388 meters of the tunnel will be mined after dragging through at the Central Warehouse Station, according to Gulermak – Sam India Builtwell JV’s Project Manager, Deniz Buyukgokmen, on LinkedIn.
In December 2022, the latest Terratec Earth Pressure Balance (EPB) machine, fondly called Narmada, started building a down-line tunnel from the western shaft of Kapodara station.
In January, TBM Narmada drilled its first hidden tunnel at Labheshwar station, a distance of 1.5 kilometres.
TBM S78, deployed in Phase 1 project of Pune Metro under Gulermak-Tata Projects JV, has been designated for construction of six tunnels for 3.46 km package CS2/UG1. This contract was awarded by Gujarat Metro Rail Corporation (GMRC) in March 2021. It involves construction of the tunnel and development of three stations (Central Warehouse, Labheshwar Chowk and Kapodara).
TBM S94 will also follow the same trajectory as S78, which will be recovered from the eastern shaft of Surat Railway Station. Workers will carefully destroy the tunnel rings when excavation takes place at Labheshwar Chowk and Central Warehouse stations.
This success marks a significant progress in Surat Metro’s efforts to develop urban transport infrastructure. The coordinated efforts of TBM align with the comprehensive urban development vision of Surat and create the latest underground connectivity.
The breakthrough at Central Waiting House station is an important moment in the Surat Metro Phase 1 project. Surat is set to transform its urban transport landscape, with Narmada and Tapi TBM leading the way in tunnel construction. The Gulermak-Sam India Biltwell JV has clearly demonstrated commitment to realizing the vision of Gujarat Metro Rail Corporation, and expectations for the future of Surat Metro are rising.
