Railway Tracks to Noida Airport Likely to Be Built Near MRO Facility.

A proposed 61 km railway line connecting Noida International Airport (NIA) with major routes to Howrah, Chennai, and Mumbai may now be rerouted near the maintenance, repair, and overhaul (MRO) and aviation hubs set to be developed in the airport’s second phase. Originally, the railway alignment was planned to connect to the airport’s ground transportation center (GTC) through an 11 km underground tunnel. However, Noida International Airport Ltd (NIAL) flagged concerns that extensive tunneling would be both costlier and potentially unfeasible due to soil conditions.

The GTC, planned for a 20-acre site between the two airport terminals, will be designed to offer direct connections to buses, metro, rapid rail, and pod taxis, ensuring passengers can travel to and from the airport without leaving the terminal. NIAL’s CEO, Arun Vir Singh, explained that while the original draft had the rail tracks running underground within the GTC, this could present technical challenges, particularly as the airport expands.

In a meeting in September, the airport’s concessionaire, YIAPL, proposed an alternative route for the railway tracks along the boundary of the MRO and aviation hub areas, with a dedicated railway station planned nearby. In a letter to NIAL’s nodal officer Shailendra Bhatia, YIAPL CEO Christoph Schnellmann suggested the railway station could be situated close to the eastern campus of NIA and linked to the multi-modal cargo hub via an efficient road network. Shuttle services could also be operated to connect the station with the airport terminal.

This shift in the railway line’s alignment would support seamless transportation for both passengers and cargo, complementing the airport's broader multi-modal connectivity strategy.

ET