Orbital rail-RRTS link? A feasibility study likely soon

Ghaziabad: UP govt has appointed GDA as the nodal agency for the orbital rail project, which is a part of the NCR Planning Board’s 2041 regional plan. The corridor is proposed to be linked with the rapid rail corridor near Duhai.
Once ready, it will ensure seamless passenger and freight movement across NCR cities, including Ghaziabad, Baghpat, Noida, and Greater Noida.
An official from GDA said, “GDA has been given the mandate to act as an interface with the Haryana Rail Infrastructure Development Corporation (HRIDC) for preparing the feasibility report. Approximately Rs 10 lakh has already been paid to HRIDC, and the report is expected in six months.”
In May, Meerut divisional commissioner Selva Kumari held a meeting with key stakeholders, including the NCR Planning Cell, UPSIDA, UPSRTC, and GDA, to push the project forward.
The orbital rail will span 270km, with 90km running through UP. Unlike the access-controlled Eastern and Western Peripheral Expressways, the orbital rail will have stations every 5km, covering areas in UP and Haryana that the expressways bypass.
Officials said the project is crucial if the region is to emerge as a logistics hub.
“With multi-modal integration as the catchword, it will also be connected with the rapid rail somewhere near Duhai. So, NCR cities of Ghaziabad, Baghpat, Noida, and Greater Noida, will be covered. It will create a new freight corridor which, in a way, will be connected to the Dadri freight corridor,” he added.
By 2032, five urban clusters in NCR — Gurgaon-Manesar, Faridabad-Ballabgarh, Meerut, Ghaziabad, and Noida-Greater Noida-Kasna — are projected to become mega cities.