What is the News ?

The Kolkata Metro of Indian Railways intends to substitute the steel third rail with a composite Aluminum third rail Current Collector.

Facts About:

• The third rail system serves as a method of supplying electrical power to trains via a conductor positioned beside the railway tracks.
• Kolkata Metro Railway has relied on steel Third Rails for the past four decades.
• It has now opted for composite Aluminium Third Rails in all forthcoming construction projects, as well as retrofitting existing corridors that currently employ steel Third Rails.
• By making this transition, Kolkata Metro Railway joins a select group of metro systems, including those in London, Moscow, Berlin, Munich, and Istanbul, that have also shifted from steel Third Rails to Aluminium Third Rails.

Advantages of Aluminum Composite Third Rail compared to Steel Third Rail include:

• Reduced resistive current loss leading to improved traction voltage levels.
• Lower maintenance and life cycle costs.
• Enhanced efficiency of train operations.
• Significant improvements in energy efficiency.
• Decreased carbon footprint.