Central Railway mega block on Sunday to hit Main and Harbour line locals

Mumbai local train commuters will have to plan around a Central Railway mega block on Sunday. The Mumbai division will take the block on the Main line and the Harbour line for essential engineering and maintenance work. Services between Matunga and Mulund, and between Panvel and Vashi, will be affected. Central Railway said this in a press release issued on Thursday.

On the Main line, the block will be in force on both the UP and DOWN slow lines between Matunga and Mulund stations from 11.05 am to 3.55 pm.

During this period, DOWN slow line services leaving Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj Terminus (CSMT) between 10.14 am and 3.32 pm will be diverted to the DOWN fast line between Matunga and Mulund. These trains will halt at Sion, Kurla, Ghatkopar, Vikhroli, Bhandup and Mulund, and will be put back on the slow line at Mulund. They will reach their destinations about 15 minutes late.

Similarly, UP slow line services leaving Thane between 11.07 am and 3.51 pm will be taken onto the UP fast line at Mulund. They will run on the fast line from Mulund to Matunga and halt at Bhandup, Vikhroli, Ghatkopar, Kurla and Sion. They will be sent back to the UP slow line at Matunga and will also arrive about 15 minutes late.

All UP and DOWN locals starting from or arriving at CSMT between 11 am and 5 pm will reach their destinations about 15 minutes behind schedule.

On the Harbour line, the block will be in force on both UP and DOWN lines between Panvel and Vashi stations from 11.05 am to 4.05 pm. The PORT line is not included.

UP Harbour services from Panvel towards CSMT between 10.33 am and 3.49 pm will be cancelled. Similarly, DOWN Harbour services from CSMT towards Belapur and Panvel between 9.45 am and 3.12 pm will also be cancelled.

On the Trans-Harbour line, UP services from Panvel towards Thane between 11.02 am and 3.53 pm will be cancelled. DOWN services from Thane towards Panvel between 10.01 am and 3.20 pm will also be cancelled.

To ease passengers' difficulties, Central Railway will run special locals on the CSMT-Vashi section during the block. Trans-Harbour line services between Thane and Vashi or Nerul stations will continue to run, and PORT line services will also continue during the block.

Central Railway said the maintenance blocks are necessary for the upkeep of infrastructure and the safety of passengers. The railway has appealed to passengers to cooperate with the railway administration over the inconvenience caused.