However, more fast services between Chhatrapati Shivaji Terminus and Thane are unlikely to be added soon as central railway does not have rakes to add more services.
The Central Railway (CR) finally commissioned the two new railway lines between Kurla and Thane which will cater only to outstation passenger trains originating from and leading to the Lokmanya Tilak Terminus (LTT), thereby freeing up space for more services on the suburban lines, on Sunday. However, more fast services between Chhatrapati Shivaji Terminus (CST) and Thane are unlikely to be added soon. The reason: CR does not have rakes to add more services.
General manager of the CR, Kul Bhushan, while speaking to the media, admitted that there are no additional rakes as of now and thus, capacity addition will have to wait until more rakes are delivered. Bhushan said that presently he was stressing on the completion of the conversion of 9-car trains into 12-car ones by August 15 and the conversion of the direct current network into alternating current network. Improving punctuality of suburban, outstation as well as freight trains and their connectivity is also on the agenda.
The GM pointed out the fact that the Kurla-Thane stretch was the most congested and thus, the CR will try to readjust outstation trains which leave from and go towards Dadar and CST stations, to LTT. This will reduce congestion and possibilities of adding more services on the suburban fast lines will increase.
According to CR chief spokesperson VA Malegaonkar, there are presently three sources from where the CR gets its rakes: new rakes under the Mumbai Urban Transport Project (MUTP), old retrofitted ones and lastly, the rakes transferred by the Western Railway (WR) from its fleet to the CR. “We expect to add new services in July. The fresh yearly timetable that is issued in July should have details about the new services,” Malegaonkar said.
The commissioning work passed without any protests from Vikhroli residents who are opposed to the new lines. Heavy police presence at Vikhroli and some preventive arrests ensured that the commissioning work went on smoothly without any resistance.
Work on the two railway lines began in 1995 and the original cost of the project was Rs166 crore. These fifth and sixth railway lines are expected to ease the burden on the third and fourth fast tracks.
Until recently, long-distance passenger trains, as well as suburban trains, used to run along these lines, causing enormous delays. With two more lines, this problem is
expected to be considerably alleviated.
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