Mega blocks on Central and Harbour lines on Sunday; some locals cancelled, others up to 25 minutes late
Central Railway will take blocks on the main line and Harbour line for track and signal maintenance, cancelling some suburban services.
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Mumbaikars planning to travel by local train on Sunday should check the railway timetable before leaving home. Central Railway has announced mega blocks on the main line between Matunga and Mulund, and on the Harbour line between Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj Terminus (CSMT) and Chunabhatti-Bandra.
The blocks are being taken for maintenance and repair of the railway tracks and the signal system. Some local services will be cancelled and some trains are likely to run 20 to 25 minutes late.
On the Central Railway main line, the block on the up and down slow lines between Matunga and Mulund will be in force from 11.05 am to 3.55 pm on Sunday. Track maintenance and repair of the signal system will be carried out during this time.
During the block, local trains on the up and down slow lines will be diverted to the fast line. The regular timetable will therefore change, and passengers may take longer than usual to reach their stations. Some local services will be cancelled, while some will run 20 to 25 minutes late.
Passengers travelling on Sunday for shopping, work or any other reason should take note of the changes. With crowding at stations likely to rise because of the changes in local services, planning the journey will be necessary.
A mega block will also be taken on the Harbour line on Sunday. It will be in force on the up and down lines between CSMT and the Chunabhatti and Bandra stations from 11.40 am to 4.40 pm.
During this period, up and down local services from CSMT to Vashi, Belapur and Panvel, as well as those between CSMT and Bandra and Goregaon, will be cancelled. Harbour line passengers may therefore face difficulty in travelling.
To reduce passengers' inconvenience, special local services will run between Panvel and Kurla. This will give passengers on the route some alternative. Local services on the Trans-Harbour line and the Belapur-Uran route will continue to run.
Western Railway has taken a block between Mahim and Mumbai Central after midnight on Saturday. There will, however, be no block on Western Railway during the day on Sunday, so its passengers will not face disruption from a block during the day.
With the blocks on Central Railway and the Harbour line changing the local timetable, passengers should check official railway notices before starting their journey. If possible, they should consider other routes and keep extra time in hand when leaving for urgent work.
