First shipment of Orange Train wagons to reach Lahore next month

LAHORE: First shipment of rolling stock for Lahore Orange Line Metro Train will arrive Karachi tomorrow (Friday) from China and reach Lahore in the first week of October.

This was revealed by Adviser to the chief minister, Punjab and Chairman of the steering committee for Lahore Orange Line Metro Train Project (LOMTP) Khawaja Ahmad Hassaan while addressing the weekly progress review meeting here Wednesday. He told that a team of Chinese Operations and Maintenance Engineers has already arrived Lahore for operating the train.

A total of 27 trains, each comprising of five cars, will be operated under the LOMTP, he said, adding by the end of this year, 23 sets of trains are scheduled to reach Lahore from China. Khawaja Ahmad Hassaan informed that a befitting ceremony will be held in Lahore for receiving the first batch of locomotive for Orange Line Metro Train. He directed for quickly finalising all arrangements for parking these bogies at Depot at Dera Gujran and stabling yard at Ali Town, Raiwind Road.

The meeting was told that gray structures of 24 out of the 26 stations of Lahore Orange Line Metro Train Project has been completed and execution of electrical and mechanical work at all these places was in full swing by Chinese contractor CR-NORINCO.

Khawaja Ahmad Hassaan directed for immediately removing the debris and other hurdles from around the structure of stations for facilitating flow of traffic in these areas. He directed traffic police and local police for escorting electrical and mechanical equipment from warehouse to the sites of installation and providing security for these installations.

He directed for taking the project as a challenge by executing work on fast track and setting short timelines for accomplishing various tasks. He directed the civil and E&M contractors for increasing labour force for this purpose for completing the project as per the deadline.

The meeting was informed that 74.2 percent of the civil work on Lahore Orange Line Metro Train Project has so far been completed. Progress on package-I from Dera Gujran, GT Road to Chouburji was 86.1 percent, on package-II from Chouburji to Ali Town was 53.4 percent, on Depot near Dera Gujran was 79.2 percent while on stabling yard near Ali Town it was 75.2 percent. An overall 18 percent electrical and mechanical work of the project has also been completed.

The meeting was told that work for pre-casting U-Tub girders and transoms for package II of the train, from Chouburji to Ali Town, has gained momentum with the employment of steam curing technology, which has been introduced for the first time in Pakistan for pre-casting these structures.

The very first experiment in this regard has been fruitful which has facilitated speedy manufacturing of the track along this stretch. An average of nine U-Tub girders were being pre-cast daily and as many girders will be launched by the recently imported machinery by the contractor.

The meeting was told that construction work on package –II, from Ali Town to Chouburji, was moving on satisfactorily. A total of 806 U-tub girders are being fabricated for constructing 40 feet elevated track for the train. Each U-tub girders is 30 meters long, 5.5 meters wide and weighs 216 tons. After kicking off launching of these structures, the track for the train will begin taking shape along package-II. So far 270 U-tub girders have been launched, the meeting was told.

Chief Engineer LDA Asrar Saeed, Chief Engineer Tepa Saif-ur-Rahman, General Manager NESPAK Salman Hafeez, senior officials of Lesco, Wasa, PTCL, Sui gas, Traffic Police, Railways, Rescue 1122, Civil Defence, Chinese contractor, CR- NOROINCO, representatives of Chinese Engineering Consultant and local contractors of the project attended the meeting.