The Western Railway (WR) is set to increase the minimum speed of trains running on slow tracks between Churchgate and Borivali to 90 kmph which earlier varied from 40-60 kmph. On the fast corridor, trains are already running at an achievable speed of about 100 kmph. The move to make the slow trains run faster will benefit around 37 lakh commuters of the WR.
This will help commuters reach the stations faster and shorten the gaps between two consecutive services. Also, once the system normalises, it will give the WR a scope to add more trains in the system. At present the WR operates 1,352 services everyday.
As a part of achieving this goal, the WR has improved the signalling system. There are 83 signals — of 1,300 odd signals placed every 450-700 metres — whose aspects have been augmented from 3 signs (red, yellow and green) to 4 signs (red, yellow, double yellow and green).
"We have made the necessary changes in the signalling system. We have sent a letter to the Commissioner of Railway Safety for final approvals, and we expect to get the nod soon," said Sanjay Mishra, Divisional Railway Manager, Western Railway.
According to officials, this change is important as the trains need not lower their speed if the signal is green or double yellow. Green and double yellow indicate that a train can achieve good speed which is currently 70-90 kmph. And in case it's yellow, then the speed is to slowed down to 38-40 kmph.
The WR currently has 101 rakes in their fleet, of which 89 are operating.
