RailEnquiry

Residents and pedestrians at Andheri got the first preview of the new Mumbai Metro. The four-coach Mumbai Metro train came to life on Tuesday and was, for the first time, taken upon the newly-built elevated corridor all the way till the Four Bungalows junction at a speed of 5kmph on the second day of operational trials.MMRDA officials said that the train was being tested for its electrics and was shunted in the yard at Versova on Monday by charging it with the newly-laid 25KV overhead traction wires. The three trains, manufactured by Chinese firm CSR Nanjing, had been kept at the Versova yard after being shipped from there.“Now that the yard is almost ready and overhead wires laid and charged, this was one of the first successful trials taken. The train that runs on standard gauge and has longitudinal side-ways seats, was successfully taken up the viaduct and back from the yard,” an MMRDA official said on condition of anonymity.The first corridor of the Mumbai Metro plying between Versova-Andheri-Ghatkopar is expected to be operational by next year and initial trial runs will be taken.While the 183m steel bridge, about 9.7km of track and the driving staff are getting ready, the operations department has now begun trials of the trains. Most of the stations and connecting bridges are also at an advanced stage of construction. Once the line is complete, it is expected to improve Mumbai’s east-west connectivity.