Western Railway finishes work on laying sixth railway track till Kandivli

The next phase of laying the sixth line between Kandivali and Borivali is expected to begin soon and is scheduled to be completed by March 2025

Mumbai: In a move that will bring relief to thousands of commuters on the western line, the Western Railway (WR) has announced that work on laying the sixth railway track between Goregaon and Kandivali is finally over, and suburban local services on the route will return to normal from Monday.

The Western Railway (WR) has announced that work on laying the sixth railway track between Goregaon and Kandivali is finally over. (File/Representational Image)

On Monday, the Commissioner of Railway Safety (CRS) will also conduct a trial run on the new line between Ram Mandir and Kandivali using a special train that will run at 120 kmph, said Vineet Abhishek, chief public relations officer, Western Railway.

“All works have been completed, and no further mega block is required further for this work,” he said.

A source in WR said there may be some delays and cancellations until the new sixth line is assimilated into the network, but it will only be for a couple of days. More than 700 local trains were cancelled during a 41-day mega block implemented by WR to lay the sixth line. The last leg comprising a 10-hour mega block was implemented from 11pm on Saturday till 9am on Sunday. Another 4.5 hour-block was undertaken on the northbound line between Goregaon and Kandivali stations from 11pm on Saturday to 3:30am on Sunday finish work on laying the sixth track.

During the 41-day mega block, WR authorities constructed and operationalised an island platform at Malad station and adjusted the train timetable to ensure that trains headed in both directions did not arrive on the platform at the same time. Workers also installed a new signaling system, introduced new points for the trains to switch railway lines and implemented other technical upgrades to ensure a separate path for long-distance trains between Bandra Terminus and Kandivali.

The next phase of laying the sixth line between Kandivali and Borivali is expected to begin soon and is scheduled to be completed by March 2025. Once completed, suburban and long-distance trains can run on separate tracks from Bandra Terminus to Borivali.