Mumbai local trains to open to public from Feb 1: All you need to know

Travel by local trains, lifeline for millions of people living in Mumbai and surrounding satellite towns, was severely restricted after the coronavirus outbreak in March 2020.

In a major relief for commuters, the local train services in Mumbai will resume for everyone from Monday. The announcement in this regard was made by Union railways minister Piyush Goyal on Friday after the Maharashtra government proposed to resume the services for all commuters.

Mumbai local train services resumed for the emergency and essential services staff in June last year.

"My dear Mumbai citizens, for the convenience of all of you, the Mumbai local train will be started from February 1," Goyal said on Twitter.

Travel by local trains, lifeline for millions of people living in Mumbai and surrounding satellite towns, was severely restricted after the coronavirus outbreak in March 2020.

Here is everything you need to know about the resumption of local train services in Mumbai:

• The trains will be available in three time slots: from the start of the day's services to 7 am; 12 noon to 4 pm; and 9 pm to the end of the day. The timing has been restricted to avoid crowding during the coronavirus disease (Covid-19) pandemic.
• This means the general public will not be allowed to travel between 7 am and 12 noon and between 4 pm and 9 pm, which are considered peak travel hours.
• The government has also urged offices to go for staggered working hours to ensure less crowding in trains.
• The authorities have asked people travelling in local trains to follow Covid-19 protocols. "Any kind of negligence can become a problem for us and others as well. If you will be safe, then everyone traveling with you will be safe," Goyal said.
• The services of the local trains were resumed for the emergency and essential services staff in June last year. Later on, the authorities permitted women to travel in locals during the non-peak hours.
• Before the pandemic struck, the Central Railway was operating 1,774 suburban services daily, while the Western Railway operated 1,367 services. Currently, the two railway authorities are operating 2,985 services, about 95 per cent of the total 3,141 services, on Mumbai's suburban network.