36-hour block: Hope you don’t plan to travel by local train this weekend

Workers carry out infrastructural work during a block between Diva and Thane stations. File pic

A major 36-hour shutdown will take place on Central Railway from 2 pm this Saturday to 2 am on Monday, to get Thane station commissioned for new Thane-Diva lines. About 390 (up and down) suburban services on the mainline will remain cancelled during this period along with 18 mail-express trains, both up and down. Four other mail-express trains will also be short-terminated.

During the mega block, suburban services will not be available at Kalwa, Mumbra, Kopar and Thakurli stations. Passengers from these areas are instead advised to board trains from Thane, Diva, Dombivli and Kalyan, respectively. Locals originating or terminating at Dombivli will also not be available. The block will also lead to slow locals halting o¬n fast line platforms at Thane, Dombivli and Diva.

The Railway administration, in coordination with the municipal authorities, has arranged for buses for the benefit of passengers.

The work to be done

The newly laid track on the west side between Thane and Vitava Road underbridge will be cut and connected to the existing down and up slow lines. Similarly, dismantling of four existing turnouts and insertion and commissioning of four turnouts will also be carried out with overhead wires and signalling at Thane yard.

Load deflection tests on two girder bridges using twin diesel engines on each track will also be conducted. Seven tower wagons, three track machines, four excavators, two diesel multi-locos, one ballast rake, etc will be used for carrying out engineering, electrical and signal and telecommunication works.

A total of 600-700 labourers, staff and officers will be working in shifts continuously for 36 hours. In addition, regular maintenance works of track, overhead wires, signalling shall be carried out in the shadow block.

On completion of this block, the down and up local lines will be commissioned between Thane and Diva on designated alignment.

These mega blocks are needed as the new two tracks have been laid on the west of existing tracks between Thane-Vitava and Nutan Tunnel-Diva sections and on the east side of existing tracks between Vitava-Nutan tunnel.

The entire work involves more than 24 cut-and-connections between new and existing tracks.

With this block, 14 cut-and-connections are getting completed.

These blocks shall continue in the weekends till Thane-Diva 5th and 6th line get commissioned by mid-February. As the work involves major infrastructural changes, it may involve train delays till the line finally gets commissioned.