For thousands of commuters travelling by the harbour line trains of the Central Railways, there is something to cheer about.
Chief Minister Ashok Chavan has asked the officials of Central Railways as well as the Mumbai Rail Vikas Corporation (MRVC) to explore the possibility of running fast services on the line.
During a presentation made to the chief minister by MRVC, he asked the officials to consider various other options to improve the quality of the rail travel in the city.
According to officials, Chavan has requested CR officials to expedite as well as prioritise the Virar-Vasai-Diva-Panvel corridor during the third phase of Mumbai Urban Transport Project (MUTP).
In the wake of acute water shortage the city is facing, Chavan also asked if recycled water can be used to clean the compartments.
"Under MUTP-II, six laning of the Central Railways corridor between Chhatrapati Shivaji Terminus up to Kurla and Thane up to Diva has been planned. We expect the work to be completed by 2015,” said Chavan.
He added that under the second phase,the sixth lane of the Mumbai Central-Borivli corridor of the Western Railways will also be laid. ‘This would mean that the total length of suburban rail will go up by 88km from the existing 790km. 96 new nine-coach rakes will also be added to the fleet. We also intend to make all the CR, WR trains 12-coach-long. I have also advised the officials to expedite the “air cooling system” in the rakes which can bring the temperatures down by 2 to 3 degrees, “ said the CM.
Chavan said the state is requesting the Centre to come up with a commemorative postal stamp on the day the 101st rake arrives in the city in October this year.
