In Mumbai: Delay on harbour line likely to continue today

Harbour line services on the Central Railway (CR) were hit after four goods wagons loaded with split red lentil (masoor dal) derailed soon after crossing GTB station at 4.09am on Monday.

Commuters on the Harbour line will continue to face hiccups in services on Wednesday, as the restriction on speed — 20kmph — between Wadala and Guru Tegbahaddur Nagar (GTB) station is likely to stay on Wednesday too.

Around 10 lakh suburban commuters use the harbour line daily, which provides connectivity to Navi Mumbai. (HT FILE)

Harbour line services on the Central Railway (CR) were hit after four goods wagons loaded with split red lentil (masoor dal) derailed soon after crossing GTB station at 4.09am on Monday. Nobody was injured in the accident, but suburban services remained affected throughout Monday and Tuesday, causing passengers much problems.

On Monday, over 188 services were cancelled and several trains were running almost an hour late, while on Tuesday, services were still running slow.

Around 10 lakh suburban commuters use the harbour line daily, which provides connectivity to Navi Mumbai. Even on Tuesday, the services remained 5 to 10 minutes late during peak hours, as the railway administration was replacing concrete sleepers that were damaged during the derailment.

Moreover, the administration will have to undertake a special block to remove three wagons which are still lying near the tracks. “The sleeper replacement work is likely to continue until Tuesday night and the toppled wagons will be removed only with the help of an accident relief train (ART) that will require a special block,” said a CR spokesperson. However, so far authorities have not decided when to do this.

Meanwhile, harbour line commuters complained about the delay in some of the trains. “Disruption has become a normal phenomena on the harbour line ; the trains are always delayed for some reason,” complained Sudeep Billawa, a Belapur resident.

In Mumbai: Harbour line derailment leads to rush at Kurla station, traffic jams