Wait till Monday to ride the underground Aqua Line

The Mumbai Metro Rail Corporation (MMRC) had planned to open this section for commercial operations on Sunday, but that plan has changed. “Since the inauguration took place in the evening, we will need to prepare the stations for public operations

Mumbai: Mumbaiites eager to take a joyride on the much-hyped, underground Metro 3, or Aqua Line, will have to wait until Monday, instead of Sunday, as originally promised.

**EDS: IMAGE VIA @narendramodi ON SATURDAY, OCT 5, 2024** Mumbai: Prime Minister Narendra Modi interacts with the labourers involved in constructing the underground line during a ride in the newly inaugurated metro train of the Bandra-Kurla Complex (BKC) to Aarey JVLR section of Mumbai Metro Line 3, Maharashtra, Saturday, Oct 5, 2024. (PTI Photo)(PTI10_05_2024_000413B) (PTI)

Phase One of Metro 3, the 12.44-km-long route between Aarey JVLR and Bandra Kurla Complex (BKC), was inaugurated by Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Saturday evening. Amid a packed schedule during his visit to Mumbai and Thane, Modi rode the new Aqua line from BKC to Santacruz metro stations, before departing for the national capital.

The Mumbai Metro Rail Corporation (MMRC) had planned to open this section for commercial operations on Sunday, but that plan has changed. “Since the inauguration took place in the evening, we will need to prepare the stations for public operations. Some elements that have been moved from the stations have to be restored and it’s a time-consuming process,” an MMRC official explained.

MMRC officials on Saturday said the route, with 10 stations, will be open for commercial operations from 11am on Monday; services will run up to 10.30 pm. From Tuesday, services will run according to a formal timetable, that is, from 6.30am to 10.30pm from Monday to Saturday, and 8.30am to 10.30 pm on Sundays. Fares along the 12.44-km route will range from ₹10 to ₹50.

The first phase is part of a 33.5-km metro corridor that extends from Colaba to SEEPZ, a metro line that promises to change the dynamics of mass transport as it will link several business districts in the island city and suburbs, the two airport terminals and other important parts of the city.

The Aqua Line is Mumbai’s first, and the state’s second, underground metro line. For MMRC, the project is an engineering marvel for many reasons. Engineers bore tunnels under congested downtown areas that house old and dilapidated buildings, old markets and historical sites with heritage buildings. “We built underground stations next to these buildings as the roads were narrow and space was scarce,” explained S K Gupta, Director (Projects), MMRC.

Moreover, some portions of the line run below the Mithi River. Also, tunneling close to the coast was challenging as the water table was shallow, he said. “The area’s geology primarily comprises basalt below the top layer of 2-9 metres of soil,” Gupta added. “A total of 55 km of tunnelling was achieved using 17 dual-mode, hard-rock Tunnel Boring Machines and six segment-casting yards.”

The remaining section of the metro line, from BKC to Colaba, is likely to be made operational in two phases – between BKC and Acharya Atre Chowk in Worli by February 2025; and from Worli to Cuffe Parade in Colaba by mid-2025.