Fifth and sixth rail lines between Kurla-Thane not up to the mark

The two-day inspection of the Commissioner of Railway Safety (CRS) found that the fifth and sixth lines between Kurla-Thane are still not up to the mark.

The two-day inspection of the Commissioner of Railway Safety (CRS) found that the fifth and sixth lines between Kurla-Thane are still not up to the mark. This means that the entire exercise of the Central Railway (CR) proved futile, as it couldn’t get CRS’s approval for running long-distance trains on the new tracks.

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The CR was planning to divert a number of outstation trains on the new tracks and keep the third and fourth tracks for suburban trains.

Work on these two lines began way back in 1994 and the original cost of the project was Rs166 crore. The CRS and his team have found technical glitches and have asked the CR to strengthen the lines further and make some technical changes. The CR officials have been claiming that this stretch is ready for running long-distance trains.

“The CRS has given us five days for making these changes. It is a normal process for double-checking the quality of new lines before opening it for trains,” said V Malegaonkar, chief PRO of CR.

An engine and an empty local train were run on two lines to gauge their strength.

Once the modifications are complete, the CR will be able to run trains at a speed 105 kmph, as desired by the authorities.

On Monday, locals protested at Vikhroli station opposing starting of new lines. Angry protesters opposed the CRS visit. The new lines connecting Kurla-LTT terminate just before entering Vidyavihar.

Once these two tracks are ready, all long-distance trains starting from Kurla-LTT will run on them, without hindering the operation of fast local trains on lines three and four. Lakhs of suburban commuters suffer daily as local trains are stopped to let a long-distance train pass by.