What if Thane station had a helipad?

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Thane station could lay down an example for medical emergency practices if things work out as per the plans of the station redevelopment, which include a helipad on the rooftop of the proposed redeveloped station building, to be used for transfer of injured commuters in the golden hour during emergencies. The Mumbai suburban railway is known to have the highest death rates, with about seven to eight commuters dying every single day.

"The Rail Land Development Authority has taken up redevelopment of a few key stations on Mumbai suburban railway and Thane is one of them. As per preliminary designs of the station, the new redeveloped building will have towers on either side and the rooftop has provisions for a helipad. Though it is at a very primary stage and the actual implementation would require a host of permissions, including those from the Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA), if the proposed plan works as designed, it may well prove to be a template for other stations," a top official said.

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Thane station is a historically important one as well as among the busiest stations on Central Railway, witnessing an estimated footfall of 6.5 lakh passengers every day, as per statistics. As part of the redevelopment plan, Thane station will see the addition of several modern facilities once it is redeveloped. These include the installation of 17 escalators, 20 lifts, and 3 moving walkways to efficiently manage the crowd flow. A spacious deck spanning over 55,000 square meters will also be constructed to provide additional platform space. Additionally, multi-storey parking facilities, a sprawling roof plaza, and special provisions for hawkers are some of the other features earmarked for the station. The helipad is planned on the roof of the main building.

At present, work on the Station Area Traffic Improvement Scheme (SATIS) is underway at the east side of the station. This work promises to improve traffic congestion outside the station by building dedicated elevated decks for public transport and segregating traffic movement. "A helipad on top of the railway station sounds fancy and will require additional efforts for regular and smooth implementation, but it is good that someone thought of it and some start needs to be made somewhere. About a decade ago, who would have thought that fancy escalators at dusty and dirty railway stations would be a norm. Let's see how that works out," a regular suburban train commuter said.

7-8
Passengers that die on Mumbai suburban railways every day