Meerut metro to become India’s fastest, redefines urban rail travel

The upcoming Meerut Metro is set to become India’s fastest metro service , with a top operational speed of 120 kmph , cutting end-to-end travel time on the 21-km Meerut South-Modipuram corridor with 12 stations to about 30 minutes , officials said. In a first-of-its-kind model in the country, the metro will operate on the same tracks as Namo Bharat semi-high-speed trains , integrating regional rapid transit with city metro services. Meerut was chosen for this pilot project due to its location on the Delhi-Meerut RRTS corridor , rapid urban expansion, and heavy daily commuter traffic to the National Capital Region.

The lightweight stainless-steel, three-coach trains will be energy-efficient, equipped with regenerative braking , and compatible with Automatic Train Protection and Automatic Train Operation systems . Each fully air-conditioned train will carry over 700 passengers and offer modern amenities such as USB charging ports, luggage racks, and reserved seating for women, senior citizens and persons with disabilities. Safety features include CCTV surveillance, platform screen doors , and universal access facilities like lifts and wheelchair spaces .

With its top speed of 120 kmph , the Meerut Metro overtakes the Delhi Airport Express Line (110 kmph) and significantly outpaces other major metro systems such as the Hyderabad Metro and Bengaluru’s Namma Metro , which operate at around 80 kmph . While the Meerut Metro runs on a relatively compact 21-km corridor with 12 stations , Hyderabad Metro spans over 69 km with more than 50 stations and Bengaluru’s network covers over 75 km with around 60 stations , highlighting that Meerut’s distinction lies not in network size but in achieving the highest operational speed and fastest average travel time per kilometre among Indian metro systems.