Commuters crowded Kandivali Railway station as local trains run late in Mumbai on Monday. Pic/Satej Shinde
Commuters on the Western Railway (WR) faced significant inconvenience during peak hours on Monday morning, as Mumbai local trains on the Western Railway line were delayed by 10 to 15 minutes.
The stations became overcrowded as Mumbai local trains experienced delays.
This disruption follows Western Railway's announcement that over 175 train services on the western line will be cancelled throughout the week. Additionally, local trains will operate at a slow speed of 30 kmph between Ram Mandir Road in Goregaon and Malad on all four WR lines until October 4 due to the ongoing work to add a sixth line. The number of cancellations will gradually decrease as speed limits are increased.
Additionally, morning fast local trains from Goregaon will remain cancelled, and at Malad, Churchgate-bound fast trains will now arrive at platform number 3, which has been renumbered as platform 4.
A WR spokesperson stated, "On Saturday night, the cut-and-connect work for the fourth line, specifically the Churchgate-bound fast line, was completed. As a result, starting Sunday, the platform for Churchgate fast local trains at Malad has been changed."
Starting Monday morning, a speed restriction of 30 kmph will be imposed on all four lines between Ram Mandir Road in Goregaon and Malad due to ongoing work on the fifth and sixth lines. As a result, approximately 150 to 175 suburban trains will be cancelled. The speed restrictions will be gradually relaxed, and by October 4, services are expected to return to normal, except during block periods. Additionally, due to the unavailability of the Goregaon loop - a low-speed track section used for parking trains - all four morning fast services from Goregaon will remain cancelled.
Additionally, to facilitate the construction of the sixth line between Goregaon and Kandivli stations, a four-hour block will be implemented on the up and down fast lines at Goregaon and on the up and down fast and slow lines at Malad from 12:30 AM to 4:30 AM during the night of Monday and Tuesday (September 30/October 1). During this block period, trains will operate only between Churchgate and Andheri, as well as between Virar and Borivli on all lines.
(With inputs from Rajendra B. Aklekar)
