Metro lifts will carry 195 people at a time

Metro lifts will carry 195 people at a time

Staff Reporter
Chennai-based Johnson Lifts to supply 176 escalators
The lifts will have four flat steps at bottom and top

Majestic to have more number of escalators

BANGALORE: Bangalore Metro Rail Corporation Ltd. (BMRCL) will install heavy duty escalators, at least four in each elevated station, to ensure easy and comfortable access for passengers.

The escalators, as per BMRCL specifications, will carry at least 195 passengers at a time.

The BMRCL Board of Directors, which met here on Tuesday, decided to issue Letter of Acceptance (LoA) to Chennai-based Johnson Lifts Pvt., Ltd. While the prequalification tender notice was issued in February 2008, five companies were short-listed to submit the technical and financial bids in June last.

Finally, Johnson Lifts bagged the contract. The cost of providing the escalators, including one year defect liability (guarantee) and three years’ maintenance, comes to Rs. 114 crore, according to a senior BMRCL official.

After the company provides the performance guarantee, a contract would be signed, the official added.

To make the escalators passenger-friendly, BMRCL had stipulated that the product should have four flat steps at the bottom and on the top (unlike the two steps seen in most of the shopping malls); the step width should be at least one metre and the safety norms should comply with international standards.

The escalators would be available for moving up, to reach the stations in case of elevated stations and to come out of the stations in case of underground stations, said the official.

At the Majestic Station, there would be more escalators compared to others as it was a crossing station where the East-West and North-South Corridors would meet generating huge volume of passengers.