RailEnquiry

MUMBAI: Central Railway (CR) is exploring the possibility of running train services via Harbour line between Kurla (suburban) and Pune's Shivaji Nagar stations. Such a service will be a boon to citizens residing in Navi Mumbai as there's no direct train connectivity between the satellite township and Pune.At present, commuters from Navi Mumbai have to either rely on road transport or come to Dadar, LTT or CST to board a train to Pune.For the proposal to turn into reality, officials will have to make some technical adjustments at Panvel station. A senior CR official said, "Panvel is a major junction for long-distance trains as well as the originating and terminating station for suburban services on Harbour line. A crossover, the point at which trains interchange tracks, will have to be provided to allow movement of trains from the suburban line to the main line to establish connectivity to Shivaji Nagar."After ascertaining the feasibility of providing a cross-over at Panvel, CR officials will forward the proposal to the railway board for approval. "Funding will not be an issue as the cost of providing a cross-over is not really huge," said another official.CR officials said they do not want to take the train all the way to Pune as it will result in longer travel time. The official said, "Running such a service up to Shivaji Nagar is sufficient as it is well connected to other parts of Pune."

The distance between Kurla and Shivaji Nagar is 170 km. While the number of services has not yet been decided, CR officials said it will be run using 16 coaches used in mail/express trains. "These coaches have lavatories which are a must for journeys of such durations," said the official. "The train will halt only at Vashi, Belapur, Panvel, Karjat and Lonavla. Our aim is to limit the travel time between Kurla and Shivaji Nagar to less than 2 hours and 50 minutes. We cannot provide halt at other stations as that will increase the travel time."

Currently, Deccan Queen, which takes three hours and 10 minutes to complete the journey from CST, is the fastest train from Mumbai to Pune. The official said, "The service will also boost the economy of the regions through which the train will pass." At present, all Pune-bound trains except Pragati Express travel via Kalyan.