On March 22, 2020, local train services in Mumbai were suspended indefinitely due to the first wave of the Covid-19 pandemic.
Though, special provision was granted for health care workers and people associated with essential services.
On February 1, 2021, after a gap of over 10 months, local train services were opened for the general public. The decision was taken by the Maharashtra CM Uddhav Thackeray keeping Covid-19 cases in mind.
As the second wave of Covid-19 struck the city, local train services again came to a halt in April. Not only Mumbai but the entire country was amidst the grip of coronavirus and daily cases were rising at an alarming rate
With Covid-19 vaccinations gathering speed, Thackeray announced that the suburban train network will be open from August 15 to fully vaccinated people 14 days after their second jab.
'We are providing some relaxations now but if cases go up, we will have to resort to lockdown again. So I appeal to you to not invite another wave of Covid-19,' said Thackeray in a televised address to the state.
After all the false starts and disruptions over the last 19 months, from October 28 onwards, Central and Western Railways will operate suburban services at pre-Covid-19 level on the Mumbai division of CR and viz. 1,774 on Central Railway and 1,367 on Western Railway. But, there will be no changes in public access to trains.
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