Central Railway to operate mega block on Nov 30; check details here

To assist commuters, special local trains will run on the CSMT–Vashi section. Representational Pic

Central Railway's Mumbai Division on Friday announced a mega block on its suburban network on 30 November to carry out engineering and maintenance works. Passengers are advised to plan their journeys in advance and expect delays or cancellations during the block.

On the Main Line, UP and DOWN slow lines between CSMT Mumbai and Vidyavihar will be affected from 10:55 hrs to 15:55 hrs. DOWN slow trains departing CSMT between 10:48 hrs and 15:45 hrs will be diverted via the DOWN fast line, halting at Byculla, Parel, Dadar, Matunga, Sion, and Kurla, and will rejoin the slow line at Vidyavihar. Similarly, UP slow trains from Ghatkopar between 10:19 hrs and 15:52 hrs will run on the UP fast line, stopping at Kurla, Sion, Matunga, Dadar, Parel, and Byculla.

On the Harbour Line, UP and DOWN services between Panvel and Vashi (excluding Port line) will be affected from 11:05 hrs to 16:05 hrs. UP services from Panvel to CSMT (10:33-15:49 hrs) and DOWN services from CSMT to Belapur/Panvel (9:45-15:12 hrs) will be cancelled.

For the Trans-Harbour Line, UP services from Panvel to Thane (11:02-15:53 hrs) and DOWN services from Thane to Panvel (10:01-15:20 hrs) will also be cancelled. To assist commuters, special local trains will run on the CSMT-Vashi section, and Trans-Harbour services will operate between Thane-Vashi/Nerul. Port line services will remain fully operational.

Major boost for Mumbai suburban network as Kalyan-Badlapur line nears key milestones

With the Union Cabinet sanctioning the new Badlapur-Karjat line (the construction of the 3rd and 4th railway lines) a day earlier, mid-day on Wednesday did a ground reality of the ongoing work of the Kalyan-Badlapur corridor. The project, an important capacity enhancement work under Mumbai Urban Transport Project (MUTP) 3A, aimed at easing congestion and improving operational fluidity on the Central Railway suburban network, is being undertaken by the Mumbai Railway Vikas Corporation (MRVC).

The project, with a sanctioned cost of Rs 1510 crore, has recorded 30 per cent physical progress as of October 2025. Among the design and approvals, a drone survey has been completed, and alignment has been finalised with all project sheets approved. General arrangement drawings (GADs) for all five stations - Vitthalwadi, Ulhasnagar, Ambernath, Chikhloli, and Badlapur - have been approved, and designs of all road overbridges (ROBs) and the required technical approval drawings have also been cleared. The GADs for 51 bridges have also been sanctioned with approval for the commencement of work.

As far as the land acquisition is concerned, all government and private land has been acquired. The stage II forest clearance for the project was received in May 2025, enabling full execution along affected stretches. Among the major civil works are the ROBs, of which two have been completed and opened to road traffic, and works on two others are at an advanced stage, including the pipeline bridges.