After serving the city for 84 years, WR’s old war horse will embark on its final journey from Bandra to Churchgate.
The dust-brown and yellow local trains that served Mumbai for almost a generation will finally bow out to make way for hi-tech trains this Saturday.
Eighty-four years after the Western Railway first ran its electric train from Mahalaxmi station, the last train running on the same direct current (DC) technology will take off from Bandra this weekend.
WR officials said the last ever DC local train will run as a special train from Bandra to Churchgate. It will depart from Bandra at 12.30pm on Saturday and halt at all stations on its route.
Electrification was introduced on the Western Railway, which was then called the Bombay, Baroda and Central India Railway, on January 5, 1928, and since then, the network has been extensively widened, with 1,214 local services running and carrying about 34 lakh commuters every day.
The first electric local train had run between Mahalaxmi to Andheri. Then Bombay governor Leslie Wilson had inaugurated the event. Wilson’s name was later given to the first electric locomotives introduced in Bombay.
In the late 1950s, the Indian Railways adopted the more powerful alternating current power technology, but sections in Mumbai remained out of it due to busy traffic.
On coming Sunday, the Mumbai section will now be finally converted into alternating current till Churchgate.
The DC-AC conversion of Borivli-Virar section was completed in 2007, while the section between Borivli and Vile Parle has been converted into AC traction in November 2011.
In the last leg of the conversion of electric traction of WR’s suburban network from Direct Current (DC) to Alternate Current (AC), a mega block is planned on Sunday, between Churchgate and Andheri.
“It will be a historic moment as it will herald the end of an era of DC locals, which served the metro city of Mumbai consistently for the last 84 years. On this occasion, an exhibition showcasing the evolution of DC local trains on the Western Railway will be organised at the Churchgate station concourse on February 4,’’ said a WR spokesperson.
“With the introduction of alternating current, we will not just get faster trains, but we also will be able to save power. However, it will be bad news for roof-top travellers, who will face instant death as the new power current is almost 17 times stronger than the existing one and will spell a death knell for all those who climb the roof or go near the live wires,’’ he added.
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