Central line (Mumbai Suburban Railway)

The Central line of the Mumbai Suburban Railway is a public transit system serving Mumbai, Maharashtra, India. It consists of 24 stations from Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj Terminus (formerly Victoria Terminus) to Kalyan Junction. The entire line is at grade. It has section of quadruple track starting from Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj Terminus and ends at Kasara, Roha, Uran and Khopoli in Maharashtra.

Central line
Overview
Owner	Indian Railway
Locale	Mumbai, Maharashtra Raigad, Maharashtra Thane, Maharashtra
Termini	Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj Terminus (south) Kasara, Khopoli, Uran, Roha
Stations	62
Service
System	Mumbai Suburban Railway
Operator(s)	Central Railway (CR)
Depot(s)	Kurla, Kalva, Matunga, Sanpada[1]
Rolling stock	BHEL, Siemens, Bombardier
Daily ridership	2.9 million[2]
History
Opened	16 April 1853
Technical
Line length	180 km (110 mi)
Character	At Grade
Track gauge	1,676 mm (5 ft 6 in) Broad gauge
Electrification	25,000 V AC 1500 V DC (until 8 June 2015)
Route map to Bhusawal–Kalyan section Kasara Umbermali Khardi Thansit Atgaon Asangaon Vasind Bhatsa River Khadavli Kalu River Titwala Ambivli Ulhas River Shahad Waldhuni River Vithalwadi Kalyan Ulhasnagar Thakurli Ambarnath Dombivli Badlapur to Ahmedabad-Mumbai main Line Vangani Western line Vasai Road Shelu Juchandra Neral to Matheran Kaman Road Bhivpuri Road Kharbav Karjat Junction Bhiwandi Road to Panvel Junction Ulhas River Palasdari to Mumbai Dadar– Solapur section Kopar Kelavli Diva Junction Dolavli Dativali Lowjee Nilaje Khopoli Taloja to Karjat Junction Mumbra Navade Road Kalwa Kalamboli to Trans-Harbour line Panvel Harbour line Thane Creek Somtane Thane Rasayani Harbour line & Trans-Harbour line Apta Mulund Jite Nahur Hamrapur Bhandup Pen Kanjurmarg Kasu Vikhroli Nagothane Line 1 to Versova Ghatkopar Nidi Vidyavihar Roha Lokmanya Tilak Terminus to Konkan Railway Kurla Sion Harbour line Harbour line to Andheri Western line to Dahanu Road Matunga Dadar planned Monorail Prabhadevi (Elphinstone Road) Parel Western line to Churchgate Currey Road Chinchpokli Byculla Harbour line Sandhurst Road Masjid Line 3 Mumbai CST

The Central line in Mumbai consists of three major corridors, which bifurcate as they run into suburban satellite towns. Two corridors (one local and other through) on Central Railway run from CSMT to Kalyan Junction (55 km),[3] from where it bifurcates into two lines – one running up to Kasara (67 km) in the north-east and the other running up to Khopoli (61 km) in the south-east. These two corridors constitute the 'Main' Line. The Central main line shares one station with the Western line at Dadar. They consist of a fleet of DC as well as dual-powered EMUs.

The major car sheds on this line are at Kurla and Kalva. There are fast and slow locals here for suburban service. Slow locals halt at every station, while fast locals halts vary between Byculla, Dadar, Kurla, Ghatkopar, Vikhroli, Bhandup, Mulund, Thane, Diva, Dombivli and Kalyan Junction. All services plying beyond this junction run slow. Trains usually start from and terminate at important stations.

Routes

The Central line consists of the following routes:

• CSMT-Kasara
• CSMT-Khopoli
• CSMT-Roha
• CSMT-Uran

Stations

Names in bold indicate that the station is a fast train stop as well as important terminal.

Main line

Inside Mumbai CSMT station

Central line (Main)
#	Distance from CST (km)	Station Name	Station Code	Connections
1	0	Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj Terminus	ST / CSMT	Harbour line and Indian Railways
2	1	Masjid	MSD	Harbour line
3	2	Sandhurst Road	SNRD	Harbour line
4	4	Byculla	BY	None
5	5	Chinchpokli	CHP	None
6	6.5	Currey Road	CRD	None
7	8	Parel	PR	Prabhadevi^† (Western line)
8	9	Dadar	D/DR	Western line and Indian Railways
9	11	Matunga	MTN	None
10	13	Sion	SIN	None
11	15	Kurla	C/CLA	Harbour line
12	18	Vidyavihar	VVH	None
13	21	Ghatkopar	GC	Metro Line 1
14	23	Vikhroli	VK	None
15	25	Kanjurmarg	KJRD	Metro Line 6
16	26	Bhandup	BND	None
17	28	Nahur	NHU	None
18	32	Mulund	MLND	None
19	34	Thane	T/TNA	Trans-Harbour line and Indian Railways
20	36	Kalwa	KLVA	None
21	40	Mumbra	MBQ	None
22	43	Diva	DIVA	Vasai Road–Roha line
23	47	Kopar	KOPR	Vasai Road–Roha line
24	48	Dombivali	DI	None
25	50	Thakurli	THK	None
26	54	Kalyan	K/KYN	to Kasara and Khopoli of (Central line) and Indian Railways

†A footbridge links Parel to Prabhadevi on the Western line.

Main Line Branches

The main line of the Mumbai Suburban Railway runs from CSMT to Kalyan. It then splits into two corridors one going to Khopoli and other to Kasara.

South-east Section

South-east Section
#	Station Name	Station Code	Connections
1	Kalyan^†	K/KYN	Central line (Main) and Indian Railways
2	Vithalwadi	VLDI	None
3	Ulhasnagar	ULNR	None
4	Ambernath	A/ABH	None
5	Badlapur	BL/BUD	None
6	Vangani	VGI	None
7	Shelu	SHLU	None
8	Neral	NRL	Matheran Hill Railway
9	Bhivpuri Road	BVS	None
10	Karjat	S/KJT	None
11	Palasdari	PDI	None
12	Kelavli	KLY	None
13	Dolavli	DLV	None
14	Lowjee	LWJ	None
15	Khopoli	KP/KHPL	None
† – Branch Line starts at Kalyan

Proposed station

#	Proposed	Preceding	Following
4.5	Chikhloli[4]	Ambernath	Badlapur

North-east Section

North-east Section
#	Station Name	Station Code	Connections
1	Kalyan^†	K/KYN	Central line (Main) and Indian Railways
2	Shahad	SHAD	None
3	Ambivli	ABY	None
4	Titwala	TL / TWL	None
5	Khadavli	KDV	None
6	Vasind	VSD	None
7	Asangaon	AN/ASO	None
8	Atgaon	ATG	None
9	Thansit	THS	None
10	Khardi	KE	None
11	Umbermali	OMB	None
12	Kasara	N/KSRA	None
† – Branch Line starts at Kalyan

Vasai Road–Diva–Panvel line

The Vasai Road–Bhiwandi Road-Diva–Panvel–Roha line connects the Western line station of Vasai Road with the Harbour line station of Panvel. It intersects the main line of the Central line at Diva. MEMUs operate between Dahanu Road and Roha via a branch line from Diva.

Vasai Road–Bhiwandi-Diva–Panvel–Roha line
#	Station Name	Station Code	Connections
1	Vasai Road	BS/ BSR	Western line and Indian Railways
2	Juchandra	JCNR	None
3	Kaman Road	KACR	None
4	Kharbao	KBV	None
5	Bhiwandi Road	BIRD	None
6	Kopar	KOPR	Central line (Main)
7	Diva	DIVA	Central line (Main)
8	Dativali	DTVL	None
9	Nilaje	NILJ	None
10	Taloja	TJPD	Navi Mumbai Metro
11	Navade Road	NVRD	None
12	Kalamboli	KLMC	None
13	Panvel	PL/ PNVL	Harbour line, Trans-Harbour line and Indian Railways

Nerul/CBD Belapur–Uran line

The Nerul/CBD Belapur–Uran rail track of 27 km is currently under construction.[5] The line is being constructed by CIDCO at a cost of ₹14.12 billion.[6] It is expected to be operational by 2015.[7]

The proposed railway stations are as follows:[8]

Central line (Nerul/CBD Belapur–Uran)
#	Station Name	Station Code	Connections
1	Nerul	NU	Harbour line and Trans-Harbour line
	CBD Belapur	BR	Harbour line and Trans-Harbour line
2	Seawoods–Darave^†		Harbour line and Trans-Harbour line
3	Sagar Sangam		None
4	Targhar		None
5	Baman Dongari		None
6	Kharkopar	KR	None
7	Gavan		None
8	Ranjanpada		None
9	Nhava Sheva		None
10	Dronagiri		None
11	Uran City		None

History

The first passenger train in India from Chhatrapati Shivaji Terminus in Mumbai to Thane ran on 16 April 1853 on the track laid by the Great Indian Peninsula Railway. The GIPR line was extended to Kalyan in 1854 and then on the north-east side to Igatpuri and the south-east side to Khopoli via Palasdari railway station at the foot of the Western Ghats in 1856.

Electrification

Railway electrification in India began with the first electric train, between Bombay Victoria Terminus and Kurla by the Great Indian Peninsula Railway's (GIPR) on 3 February 1925, on 1.5 kV DC. The Kalyan–Pune section was electrified with 1.5 kV DC overhead system in 1930.[9]

The previously used 1.5 kV DC was converted to 25 kV AC on 5 May 2013 from Kalyan to Khopoli and Kalyan to Kasara.[10] Conversion from 1.5 kV DC to 25 kV AC on the Lokmanya Tilak Terminus-Thane-Kalyan section was completed on 12 January 2014.[11] The CSMT to LTT section was converted from 1.5 kV DC to 25 kV AC on 8 June 2015.[12][13]

Services

Since November 2011, all services on the Central line have been running on 12 cars. In preparation for introducing 15 car services, CR extended platforms at Byculla, Kurla, Ghatkopar, Bhandup, Mulund and Dombivli stations, from the current 270 metres to 330 metres,[14] in order to accommodate 15 coach trains. The total cost of the work was estimated at ₹37.5 million (US$530,000).[15] The first 15-car service, on the Central line, departed from Chhatrapati Shivaji Terminus to Kalyan at 7:33 pm on 16 October 2012.[16]

As of March 2014, 75 rakes operate 825 services on the Central line daily, of which 809 are 12-car and 16 are 15-car services.[12]

See also

• Mumbai Suburban Railway
• List of Mumbai Suburban Railway stations
• Central Railway

References

1. TNN (2 August 2012). "Sanpada, Kurla sheds to clear rake service backlog". The Times of India. Retrieved 12 March 2013.
2. "Minor drop in deaths on tracks of Western Railways". The Times of India. 2 April 2012.
3. "Bonanza for Mumbai rail commuters". Business Standard. 15 March 2012. Retrieved 12 March 2013.
4. http://www.pudhari.com/news/mumbai/102439.html
5. "Nerul-Belapur-Uran rail line on track, likely to be completed in 4 years". Indian Express. 30 October 2011. Retrieved 10 January 2012.
6. "Cidco begins work on Nerul-Uran rail link". Hindustan Times. 31 October 2011. Retrieved 10 January 2012.
7. PTI. "Business Line : Industry & Economy / Logistics : Nerul-Uran railway link to be ready by 2015: Cidco". The Hindu. Retrieved 10 January 2012.
8. "Cidco". Cidcoindia.com. Archived from the original on 24 January 2012. Retrieved 10 January 2012.
9. "Electric Traction I". History of Electrification. IRFCA. Retrieved 20 March 2014.
10. "From May 5, faster Central Railway with AC power" - Times Of India. Articles.timesofindia.indiatimes.com (30 April 2013). Retrieved on 2013-07-16.
11. "Soon, faster trains on Kalyan-LTT route" - The Times of India. Articles.timesofindia.indiatimes.com (13 January 2014). Retrieved on 2014-06-11.
12. "Central Railway plans DC/AC switch in May" - The Times of India. Timesofindia.indiatimes.com (25 March 2014). Retrieved on 2014-06-11.
13. "DC to AC conversion on Mumbai's Central Railways rail route completed". The Economic Times. Mumbai: PTI. 8 June 2015. Retrieved 2 January 2016.
14. "CR still in two minds over 15car trains". Mumbai Mirror. 23 January 2012. Archived from the original on 26 January 2012. Retrieved 12 March 2013.
15. "15-car rakes: Central Railway invites bids for platform extension". The Times of India. 15 April 2012.
16. TNN (16 October 2012). "15-car Central Railway trains from today". The Times of India. Retrieved 12 March 2013.