Harbour line (Mumbai Suburban Railway)

Last updated

Indian Railways Suburban Railway Logo.svg Harbour line
Overview
Owner Indian Railways
Locale Mumbai, Maharashtra
Navi Mumbai, Maharashtra
Thane, Maharashtra
Termini
Stations35
Service
System Mumbai Suburban Railway
Services
List
  • CSMT–Panvel
    Goregaon–Panvel
    CSMT-Goregaon
Operator(s) Central Railway (CR)
Depot(s)Kurla, Sanpada
Rolling stockSiemens
Daily ridership1 million [1]
History
Opened12 December 1910;114 years ago (1910-12-12)
Technical
Line length73.84 km (45.88 mi)
CharacterAt grade and elevated
Track gauge 5 ft 6 in (1,676 mm) broad gauge
Electrification Yes
Route map

Contents

BSicon lCONTf1.svg
BSicon lCONTf4.svg
BSicon ABZ+14.svg
BSicon INT.svg
Panvel
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BSicon lCONTf3.svg
BSicon v-STR.svg
BSicon HST.svg
Khandeshwar
BSicon HST.svg
Mansarovar
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Taloja River
BSicon HST.svg
Kharghar
BSicon INT.svg
CBD Belapur
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BSicon CONTfq.svg
BSicon v-CONTg.svg
BSicon HST.svg
Seawoods–Darave
planned extension to Borivali
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BSicon exvCONTg-.svg
BSicon INT.svg
Nerul
Goregaon
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BSicon lvINT.svg
BSicon vKSTRxa-.svg
BSicon HST.svg
Juinagar
Ram Mandir
BSicon vHST.svg
BSicon CONTgq.svg
BSicon ABZgr+r.svg
Jogeshwari
BSicon vHST.svg
BSicon HST.svg
Sanpada
Andheri
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BSicon INT.svg
Vashi
Vile Parle
BSicon vBHF.svg
BSicon hbKRZWae.svg
Santacruz
BSicon vBHF.svg
BSicon INT.svg
Mankhurd Yellow Line
Khar Road
BSicon vHST.svg
BSicon HST.svg
Govandi
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BSicon INT.svg
Chembur
Bandra
BSicon vINT.svg
BSicon HST.svg
Tilak Nagar
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BSicon vWBRUCKE1.svg
BSicon dWASSERq.svg
BSicon v-STR.svg
BSicon vCONTg-.svg
Mahim Junction
BSicon vHST.svg
BSicon vINT.svg
Kurla
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BSicon v-STR3.svg
BSicon vSTR2-.svg
BSicon UWu3.svg
BSicon v-LSTR3.svg
BSicon dSTR.svg
BSicon UWu1.svg
BSicon vLSTR+1-.svg
BSicon dSTR+4.svg
BSicon HST.svg
Chunabhatti
King's Circle
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BSicon INT.svg
Guru Tegh
Bahadur Nagar
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BSicon BS2l.svg
BSicon BS2r.svg
BSicon exMONO.svg
BSicon INT.svg
Wadala Road
BSicon HST.svg
Sewri
BSicon HST.svg
Cotton Green
BSicon HST.svg
Reay Road
BSicon HST.svg
Dockyard Road
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BSicon hSTRa@g.svg
BSicon lhvSTR(l).svg
BSicon STRc1.svg
BSicon lv-INT@F.svg
BSicon MASKl.svg
BSicon hvSTR-.svg
BSicon lvINT@G-.svg
BSicon v-STR+4.svg
Sandhurst Road
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BSicon vSTR.svg
BSicon vHST.svg
Masjid
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Mumbai CSMT

The Harbour line is a branch line of the Mumbai Suburban Railway operated by Central Railway. It was named so because it catered to the eastern neighbourhoods along the city's natural harbour. Its termini are Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj Terminus (CSMT), Goregaon and Panvel on the CSMT-Goregaon, CSMT-Panvel and Panvel-Goregaon routes.

The line is a double line and does not have any fast trains on it. The line runs parallel to the Central Railway line till just before Sandhurst Road station where the line turns eastward and runs elevated up till Sewri. At Wadala Road, the line branches into two. The first line goes towards King's Circle and then joins with the Western line at Mahim where it runs parallel with the Western Line on right side. It then switches sides via an elevated bridge between Bandra and Khar Road where it runs on the left side and finally terminates at Goregaon. The second line follows through Mankhurd into the city of Navi Mumbai, where it again branches out into two lines, one going to Thane (Trans-Harbour line) and the other to Panvel. The first stop outside Mumbai is the township of Vashi.

The stations in Navi Mumbai are well maintained and beautifully designed by CIDCO. There are IT offices above the stations. The rail bridge connecting Vashi and Mankhurd railway stations running over Thane creek, parallel to the road bridge has brought Navi Mumbai closer to Mumbai, boosting the development of the region.

About 580 services run daily on the Harbour line. [2] Approximately 208 of those are on the Thane-Vashi-Nerul-Panvel route and 172 of those run on the CSMT-Goregaon route. [3] Total of 41 Rakes ply on this line.

History

The first section of the Harbour line, between Kurla and Reay Road, opened on 12 December 1910. In 1925, the line was connected to the then Victoria Terminus via an elevated rail corridor between Dockyard Road and Sandhurst Road. [4] Suburban services to Mankhurd began in 1951. [5]

Later, the line was extended from Mankhurd to serve most of Navi Mumbai through the suburban rail network via the Mankhurd–Belapur–Panvel rail corridor was commissioned in phases in the 1990s. The line was extended to Vashi, with the inaugural suburban service being flagged off by President Ramaswamy Venkataraman on 9 May 1992. The Harbour line was further extended to Nerul in February 1993, Belapur in June 1993 and Panvel in June 1998. [5] The corridor was converted to a double line in April 2000. [6]

In 2004, the Trans-Harbour line was opened to the public. The line directly connected Vashi to Thane. This proved to be a boon for commuters of the two stations, who, until then, had to take a circuitous route via Mumbai city and had to change trains at Kurla.

The last direct current (DC) suburban local train ran on the Harbour line on 10 April 2016. The special train left Kurla at 11:30 pm and reached CSMT at 12:15 am. The iconic yellow-and-maroon DC local trains had their first service on 3 February 1925, when the first electric local ran between CSMT and Kurla ran on the Harbour line. The tickets for the last service were priced at 10,000 (US$120), with the proceeds to be donated to drought-affected regions of Maharashtra. The Indian Express reported that not a single ticket was sold. After the last DC service ran, Central Railway officially announced the completion of DC to AC conversion on the Harbour line. [7]

On 4 September 2016, the last 9 car train was put into a sunset as all the trains were converted to 12 coach, which increases the carrying capacity of the line by 33%. [8] Harbor line services were extended up to Goregaon on 29 March 2018. [9] [10] Work is underway to extend the line up to Borivali. [11]

Stations

(All Harbour line services are slow, which means they halt at all passing by stations.)

Harbour Main Line (CSMT–Wadala Road)
#Station NameMarathiStation CodeConnections
1 Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj Terminus छत्रपती शिवाजी महाराज टर्मिनसST/CSMT Central line
2 Masjid मशीदMSD Central line
3 Sandhurst Road सॅंडहर्स्ट रोडSNRD Central line
4 Dockyard Road डॉकयार्ड रोडDKRDNone
5 Reay Road रे रोडRRDNone
6 Cotton Green कॉटन ग्रीनCTGNNone
7 Sewri शिवडीSVENone
8 Wadala Road वडाळा रोडVD/VDLRTo Goregaon or Panvel, Mumbai Monorail

At Wadala Road, the Harbour line splits into two corridors, one going to Panvel and the other to Goregaon. The exact split occurs 800 metres north of Wadala Road station, at a location known as Ravli (variously spelled as Raoli, Ravali or Rawli) corresponding to the nearby Ravli slum. There is no railway station at Ravli Junction. However, due to the critical Ravli Junction Yard signal box, there are various public references to this name in news articles and other sources. [12] [13]

Towards Panvel

Harbour Navi Mumbai Branch Line (Wadala Road–Panvel)
#Station NameMarathiStation CodeConnections
8 Wadala Road वडाळा रोडVD/VDLRTo Goregaon
and Mumbai Monorail
9 Guru Tegh Bahadur Nagar गुरु तेग बहादुर नगरGTBNNone
10 Chunabhatti चुनाभट्टीCHFNone
11 Kurla कुर्लाCH/CLA Central line
12 Tilak Nagar टिळक नगरTKNG Indian Railways

(A Walkway has been constructed which connects to Lokmanya Tilak Terminus)

13 Chembur चेंबूरCM/CMBR Mumbai Monorail
14 Govandi गोवंडीGVNone
15 Mankhurd मानखुर्दMK/MNKDNone
16 Vashi वाशीVA/VSH Trans-Harbour line
17 Sanpada सानपाडाSNCR Trans-Harbour line
18 Juinagar जुईनगरJNJ Trans-Harbour line
19 Nerul नेरूळNU/NEU Trans-Harbour line
and Port line
20 Seawoods-Darave सीवूड्स-दारावेSWDV Trans-Harbour line
and Port line
21 CBD Belapur सीबीडी बेलापूरBR/BEPR Navi Mumbai Metro,
Trans-Harbour line
and Port line
22 Kharghar खारघरKHAG Navi Mumbai Metro
and Trans-Harbour line
23 Mansarovar मानसरोवरMANR Trans-Harbour line
24 Khandeshwar खांदेश्वरKNDS Navi Mumbai Metro
and Trans-Harbour line
25 Panvel पनवेलPL/PNVL Trans-Harbour line
and Vasai Road–Roha line

Towards Goregaon

Harbour Salsette Branch Line (Wadala Road–Bandra–Goregaon)
#Station NameMarathiStation CodeConnections
8 Wadala Road वडाळा रोडVD/VDLRTo Panvel
and Mumbai Monorail
9 King's Circle किंग्ज सर्कलKCENone
10 Mahim Junction माहिम जंक्शनMM Western line
11 Bandra वांद्रेB/BA Western line
12 Khar Road खार रोडKHAR Western line
13 Santacruz सांताक्रुझSTC Western line
14 Vile Parle विलेपार्लेVLP Western line
15 Andheri अंधेरीAD/ADH Western line
and Metro Line 1
16 Jogeshwari जोगेश्वरीJOS Western line
17 Ram Mandir राम मंदिरRMAR Western line
18 Goregaon गोरेगावGO/GMN Western line

Future development

Kurla–Shivajinagar service

CR has sought permission from the Railway Board to run EMUs on the Harbour line between Kurla and Shivajinagar in Pune. The service would provide direct connectivity between Navi Mumbai and Pune, which is currently not available. [14] EMUs will be modified to include six motor cars.

CR plans to use 16 coach mail/express trains to cover the 170 km distance in approximately 2 hours and 50 minutes. Stations on the line will be Kurla, Vashi, Belapur, Panvel, Karjat, Lonavla and Shivajinagar. [15] Work on extending Harbour Line branch from Goregaon to Borivali is underway since March 2024.

See also

References

  1. Mumbai: CST-Panvel line may run fully AC trains–India–IBNLive
  2. "CR wants Sewri, Chunnabhatti crossings shut during peak hours, News–City". Mumbai Mirror . Archived from the original on 10 September 2012. Retrieved 10 January 2012.
  3. "Harbour line woes to continue for now". The Times of India. 19 December 2011.
  4. "Harbour line to take elevated route at Kurla". The Times of India . 8 September 2012. Retrieved 7 October 2014.
  5. 1 2 "Mumbai: Suburban services extension up to Vashi on harbour line completes 30 years". Free Press Journal. Retrieved 30 September 2023.
  6. CIDCO. "Railway Projects" . Retrieved 6 October 2014.
  7. "End of an era: Mumbai bids goodbye to last DC local". 11 April 2016.
  8. "Mumbai's last 9-car local will ride into sunset tomorrow - Times of India".
  9. "From today, Mumbaiites can take harbour trains from Goregaon". Hindustan Times. 29 March 2018. Retrieved 30 September 2023.
  10. "Mumbai: All Harbour trains to Andheri to be extended till Goregaon". The Times of India. 17 November 2021. ISSN   0971-8257 . Retrieved 30 September 2023.
  11. "Harbour line extension to Borivali back on track". Hindustan Times. 11 October 2022. Retrieved 30 September 2023.
  12. "Mumbai: Trains affected by megablock on Harbour, Trans Harbour lines". Daily News and Analysis. 11 March 2016.
  13. "Mumbai: Harbour Line services affected due to technical snag". Mid-Day Mumbai. June 2016.
  14. "Pune may soon have its first direct train to Navi Mumbai - Express In…". Archived from the original on 23 January 2013.
  15. "Central Railway plans to connect Navi Mumbai and Pune". The Times of India . Archived from the original on 29 July 2013.