Bullet train: First section of the 21-km undersea tunnel sees breakthrough
The 2.7-km tunnel section, part of the Mumbai-Ahmedabad bullet train project, has been constructed between Ghansoli and Shilphata in Maharashtra.
Out of the total 21 km, 5 km is being constructed using the New Austrian Tunnelling Method (NATM) between Shilphata and Ghansoli, while the remaining will be built using Tunnel Boring Machines (TBMs). The tunnel also includes a 7-km-long undersea section beneath Thane Creek, the ministry of railways said in a statement.
To expedite tunnelling in the NATM portion, an Additionally Driven Intermediate Tunnel (ADIT) was constructed, allowing simultaneous excavation towards Ghansoli and Shilphata sides, the statement added.
Comprehensive safety measures have been implemented at the site, including ground settlement markers, piezometers, inclinometers, strain gauges, and biometric access control systems to ensure safe and controlled tunnelling activities without disturbing nearby structures.
India's first high-speed train project is now moving faster. Track laying and the construction of overhead electrical wires, stations, and bridges are also going on rapidly. The construction work in Maharashtra, which was delayed earlier, has also picked up pace. In parallel, the progress on procurement of systems for operations and control is also going well, the statement said.
Indian Railways is developing the country's first 508-km bullet train project using Japanese Shinkansen technology. Accordingly, it has secured approval from Japan to use its latest generation E10 Shinkansen trains in the Indian project.
Japan is currently running E5 trains. Next generation trains are E10, which Japan will also introduce later.
In the spirit of strategic partnership between Japan and India, the Japanese government has agreed to introduce E10 Shinkansen trains in the Mumbai-Ahmedabad Bullet train project. It is noteworthy that E10 will be introduced simultaneously in India and Japan, the ministry of railways said in the statement.
Shinkansen technology is expected to set new benchmarks for speed, safety, and reliability. This reflects the deep strategic and technological cooperation between India and Japan, the statement said.
The success of the Mumbai-Ahmedabad High-Speed Rail (MAHSR) project is laying the foundation for future bullet train corridors in India. Some of the corridors under consideration are Delhi-Varanasi, Delhi-Ahmedabad, Mumbai-Nagpur, Mumbai-Hyderabad, and Chennai-Mysore, among others.
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Hans India
an hour ago
- Hans India
MRI equipment to ensure safe, reliable train operations
Visakhapatnam: As part of its ongoing commitment to safety and efficiency in electric traction operations, Indian Railways adopted advanced Measuring, recording, and instrumentation (MRI) equipment. The state-of-the-art technology can be retrofitted onto tower cars to continuously monitor and record critical parameters of overhead equipment (OHE) such as contact wire stagger, contact wire height, and the precise positioning of traction distribution assets using GPS data. Waltair Division of East Coast Railway has also adopted this technology, ensuring safety and punctuality of the train operations. Divisional Railway Manager Lalit Bohra said that the pantograph maintenance posed challenges for electric trains. The pantograph, mounted on the rooftop of locomotives, is vital for maintaining uninterrupted contact with the overhead catenary that supplies power to the train. Traditional manual inspections, typically performed at depots, may not always detect emerging faults in time, potentially leading to overhead wiring failures, extended delays, costly repairs, and significant safety risks. To address these challenges, Indian Railways is leveraging MRI technology to enable real-time monitoring and proactive maintenance of pantographs and OHE, the DRM explained. Senior divisional electrical engineer (TRD) Shivanad Prasad opined that with the deployment of MRI scan equipment, it can swiftly analyse any changes in OHE parameters resulting from engineering works, modernisation efforts or routine maintenance. By minimising breakdowns and delays, MRI equipment plays a crucial role in ensuring trains run safely and punctually, allowing passengers to reach their destinations securely and in time, the officials underlined.
Time of India
an hour ago
- Time of India
Despite tariffs, it's still America first for Asia's legacy automakers
SEOUL/TOKYO: Toyota and Hyundai Motor may have a beef with U.S. protectionism, but they have one thing in common with President Donald Trump: when it comes to global car markets, it's America first for Asia's legacy automakers. Trump's tariffs on imported automobiles have upended the outlook for the global industry, yet the U.S. remains by far the most important market for Japan's Toyota, South Korea's Hyundai and Asian rivals including Honda and Nissan. North America accounts for at least 40% of the revenue at both Toyota and Hyundai, filings show. The market's importance is unlikely to change any time soon, industry insiders and analysts said, especially with China, now the world's biggest auto market, dominated by homegrown electric vehicle makers such as BYD. Play Video Play Skip Backward Skip Forward Mute Current Time 0:00 / Duration 0:00 Loaded : 0% Stream Type LIVE Seek to live, currently behind live LIVE Remaining Time - 0:00 1x Playback Rate Chapters Chapters Descriptions descriptions off , selected Captions captions settings , opens captions settings dialog captions off , selected Audio Track Picture-in-Picture Fullscreen This is a modal window. Beginning of dialog window. Escape will cancel and close the window. Text Color White Black Red Green Blue Yellow Magenta Cyan Opacity Opaque Semi-Transparent Text Background Color Black White Red Green Blue Yellow Magenta Cyan Opacity Opaque Semi-Transparent Transparent Caption Area Background Color Black White Red Green Blue Yellow Magenta Cyan Opacity Transparent Semi-Transparent Opaque Font Size 50% 75% 100% 125% 150% 175% 200% 300% 400% Text Edge Style None Raised Depressed Uniform Drop shadow Font Family Proportional Sans-Serif Monospace Sans-Serif Proportional Serif Monospace Serif Casual Script Small Caps Reset restore all settings to the default values Done Close Modal Dialog End of dialog window. by Taboola by Taboola Sponsored Links Sponsored Links Promoted Links Promoted Links You May Like Cara Membantu Orang Terkasih Menghadapi Limfoma Limfoma Pelajari Undo Those Asian legacy carmakers with more robust margins and a strong hybrid lineup - such as Toyota, Hyundai, Kia Corp and to a lesser extent Honda - are more likely able to weather the U.S. tariffs storm, and potentially take market share from weaker players like Nissan, analysts said. "The environment that we're in now is becoming increasingly harsh and uncertain, starting with U.S. tariffs," Mazda executive officer Noriyuki Takimura told reporters at an event in Tokyo last week. Mazda aims to strike a balance between "defensive" measures like cost-cuts and "offensive" ones like strengthening its product lineup, he said. Live Events Two Hyundai insiders and two Japanese auto executives separately told Reuters they had no intention of downsizing their U.S. businesses in response to tariffs, even as they acknowledged the difficulties ahead. All four spoke on condition of anonymity. The U.S. is Toyota's biggest market in terms of vehicles. It sold 2.3 million vehicles there in 2024, including its Lexus brand, accounting for more than a fifth of its global total. As a source of revenue, North America was second only to Japan in the last financial year. Hyundai's North American revenue was the highest in almost a decade last year. Kim Chang-ho, an analyst at Korea Investment & Securities, estimated it generates around 60% of its profits from the U.S., thanks to higher vehicle prices. Mocked in the U.S. in the 1980s for its perceived shoddy quality, Hyundai doubled down there around a decade ago, especially after tensions between Beijing and Seoul and the rise of domestic EV makers saw it start to lose ground in China. "After years of putting in effort, our brand is finally gaining recognition in the United States," one of the Hyundai insiders said. "So we will not take our hands off the U.S." Game of chicken The U.S. has seen a surge in demand for hybrids as consumers have become more concerned about the battery range, price and charging hassles of EVs. Fuel-efficient models such as hybrids will be a key driver to gaining market share, said Morningstar analyst Vincent Sun. Toyota, Hyundai and Kia have particularly strong hybrid offerings. So far, most legacy Asian automakers have avoided raising prices in the U.S. and stronger players are likely to continue to hold off doing so, despite lower profitability, analysts said. Instead, the focus will likely be on taking market share from lower-margin rivals like Nissan and Stellantis, analysts said. 'It will shape up like a game of chicken," said Kim Sung-rae, an analyst at Hanwha Investment & Securities. "Those who will hold up well will emerge as winners.' Over time, tariffs could be a catalyst to help drive consolidation in the industry, or at least deepen existing tie-ups. Investors wonder if tariffs could push Nissan to revive merger talks with Honda that fell apart this year. Mazda, which is 5.1% owned by Toyota, and Subaru, which is 21% owned by Toyota, could become more reliant on the bigger company. More investment? While Hyundai and Kia have three U.S. factories, they still import about two-thirds of the vehicles sold there. Toyota manufactured 1.3 million vehicles in the U.S. last year, equal to 54% of the vehicles it sold there. Japanese automakers have invested more than $66 billion in U.S. manufacturing since the 1980s, building some two dozen plants, according to the JAMA auto lobby group. At a White House event attended by Trump in March, Hyundai announced a $21 billion investment plan, including a new steel factory, and a plan to boost U.S. production capacity to 1.2 million vehicles a year. The tariffs are likely to encourage Japanese and South Korean automakers to invest more into expanding production capacity and localising supply chains to protect their positions, said Justinas Liuima of research firm Euromonitor International. They will also continue to benefit from one aspect of U.S. protectionism: higher tariffs on Chinese EVs, which means they don't face the same Chinese competition in the U.S. that they do in emerging Asian markets, Liuima said. China ships very few cars to the United States, which imposed a 100% tariff on imported Chinese EVs under the previous administration of President Joe Biden. One of the Japanese executives said it wasn't a matter of simply boosting U.S. production, as high costs, especially of labour, would also weigh on profitability. "It is really a game-changer," Julie Boote, analyst at Pelham Smithers Associates in London, said about the potential longer-term tariff impact. Some automakers have held off giving guidance that takes into account tariffs for the full year, meaning investors may be in store for a rude awakening as companies adjust forecasts as they report quarterly earnings, she said. "There's lots of talk that it's already priced in. I don't really think it is."
&w=3840&q=100)
Business Standard
2 hours ago
- Business Standard
First section of 21 km bullet train undersea tunnel opens in Maharashtra
The bullet train project has achieved a major milestone of opening the first section of the 21 km undersea tunnel between BKC and Thane, according to an official release from the Ministry of Railways. The bullet train project recently achieved a major milestone by completing 310 km of viaduct construction. Track laying, construction of overhead electrical wires, stations, and bridges are going on at a rapid pace. The construction work in Maharashtra has also picked up pace. In parallel, the progress on the procurement of systems for operations and control is also going well, the release highlighted. In the spirit of strategic partnership between Japan and India, the Japanese government has agreed to introduce E10 Shinkansen trains in the Mumbai-Ahmedabad Bullet train project. It is noteworthy that E10 will be introduced simultaneously in India and Japan, as per the release. The entire 508 km corridor is being developed with Japanese Shinkansen technology. It will set new benchmarks for speed, safety, and reliability. This reflects the deep strategic and technological cooperation between India and Japan. Civil works are progressing at a rapid pace across the alignment. A 310 km viaduct is constructed. 15 river bridges are completed, and four are in the advanced stages of construction. Out of 12 stations, five are completed and 3 more are now reaching completion stage. The station at BKC is an engineering marvel. The station will be located 32.5 m below ground, and the foundation is designed to support the construction of a 95 m high building above ground. The success of the Mumbai-Ahmedabad High-Speed Rail (MAHSR) project is laying the foundation for future bullet train corridors in India. Future corridors are also under active consideration. This remarkable pace of development showcases India's capability to execute world-class infrastructure using cutting-edge global technology, with Japan playing a pivotal role as a trusted partner in this transformative journey, the release informed. (Only the headline and picture of this report may have been reworked by the Business Standard staff; the rest of the content is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
