{{Infobox rail line , name = Indian_Railways_Suburban_Railway_Logo

Western line , other_name = , color = {{rcr, Mumbai Suburban Railway, Western , logo = , logo_width = , logo_alt = , image = , image_width = , image_alt = , caption = , system =

Mumbai Suburban Railway The Mumbai Suburban Railway ( Marathi: मुंबई उपनगरीय रेल्वे) (colloquially called local trains or simply locals) consists of exclusive inner suburban railway lines augmented by commuter rail on main lines ser ...

, locale =

Mumbai Mumbai (, ; also known as Bombay — the official name until 1995) is the capital city of the Indian state of Maharashtra and the ''de facto'' financial centre of India. According to the United Nations, as of 2018, Mumbai is the second- ...

Maharashtra Maharashtra (; , abbr. MH or Maha) is a states and union territories of India, state in the western India, western peninsular region of India occupying a substantial portion of the Deccan Plateau. Maharashtra is the List of states and union te ...

, India

Palghar district Palghar District (Marathi pronunciation: aːlɡʱəɾ is a district in the state of Maharashtra in Konkan Division. On 1 Aug 2014, the State government of Maharashtra announced the formation of the 36th district of Maharashtra Palghar, it was ...

, Maharashtra, India , start = {{rws, Churchgate (south) , end = {{rws, Dahanu Road (north) , stations = 39 , routes = {{Collapsible list, Churchgate –

Dahanu Road Dahanu Road is a railway station near the town of Dahanu in Palghar district of Maharashtra. It lies on the Western line of the Mumbai Suburban Railway network. It is the northern limit of the Suburban network, although the track continues north ...

Churchgate –

Virar Virar (Pronunciation: �iɾaɾ is a coastal city in taluka Vasai and district of Palghar, India. It is clubbed into Vasai-Virar city, administered by Vasai-Virar Municipal Corporation. It lies in south part of Palghar District in Vasai Talu ...

Churchgate –

Vasai Road Vasai Road Junction (station code: BSR) is a railway station on the Western line and Vasai Road–Roha line of the Mumbai Suburban Railway network. Vasai is a historical suburban town north of Mumbai and it is located in Palghar district. I ...

Churchgate –

Bhayander Bhayandar is a suburb outside the Mumbai located near the Vasai Creek. It has a large Gujarati and Marwari population as well other mixed populations as well. It falls under the North Central ward of the Municipal Corporation. Geography Bhaya ...

Churchgate –

Borivali Borivali (Pronunciation: oːɾiʋəliː is a suburb and is located at the north-western end of Mumbai and has a large Gujarati population followed by others. Traditionally the tribals and East Indians lived in Borivali. The attractions incl ...

Churchgate –

Malad Malad (Pronunciation: aːlaːɖ is a suburb located in North Mumbai. Malad has a railway station Rail transport (also known as train transport) is a means of transport that transfers passengers and goods on wheeled vehicles running on ra ...

Churchgate – Goregaon
Churchgate –

Andheri Andheri ( �n̪d̪ʱeɾiː is a locality in the western part of the city of Mumbai in India. Udayanagari, the name of a hill near the Mahakali caves, inspired the name Andheri. On the former islet of Versova, also known as Vasave, there was ano ...

Churchgate – Bandra
Churchgate – Nallasopara

Mahalaxmi Lakshmi (; , sometimes spelled Laxmi, ), also known as Shri (, ), is one of the principal goddesses in Hinduism. She is the goddess of wealth, fortune, power, beauty, fertility and prosperity, and associated with ''Maya'' ("Illusion"). Alo ...

– Borivali , daily_ridership = 3.519 million (2016-17) , ridership2 = 1.28 billion (annual; 2016-17) , open = {{Start date and age, df=yes, 1867, 04, 12 , owner =

Indian Railways Indian Railways (IR) is a statutory body under the ownership of Ministry of Railways, Government of India that operates India's national railway system. It manages the fourth largest national railway system in the world by size, with a tot ...

, operator =

Western Railway zone The Western Railway (abbreviated WR) is one of the 19 zones of Indian Railways and is among the busiest railway networks in India, headquartered at Mumbai, Maharashtra. The major railway routes of Indian Railways which come under Western Railw ...

, character = At grade , depot = {{rws, Virar
{{rws, Kandivali
{{rws, Mumbai Central
{{rws, Lower Parel , stock = , linelength_km = 123.78 , tracklength_km = , gauge = {{RailGauge, 1676mm, allk=on , electrification = 25,000 V AC through

overhead catenary An overhead line or overhead wire is an electrical cable that is used to transmit electrical energy to electric locomotives, trolleybuses or trams. It is known variously as: * Overhead catenary * Overhead contact system (OCS) * Overhead equipmen ...

, speed_km/h = , website
Western Railways
, elevation = , map = {{MSR Western line , map_state = The Western line of the

is a public transit system serving

Mumbai Metropolitan Region Mumbai Metropolitan Region (abbreviated to MMR and previously also as Greater Bombay Metropolitan Area), is a metropolitan area consisting of Mumbai (Bombay) and its satellite towns in the northern Konkan division, of the Maharashtra state in ...

. It consists of 37 stations from

Churchgate railway station Churchgate (station code: CCG) is the southern terminus on the Western Line of the Mumbai Suburban Railway. It is located in Churchgate in South Mumbai, Maharashtra. History Early history The Fort area built by the British had three main gate ...

. It is operated by

Western Railways The Western Railway (abbreviated WR) is one of the 19 zones of Indian Railways and is among the busiest railway networks in India, headquartered at Mumbai, Maharashtra. The major railway routes of Indian Railways which come under Western Rail ...

(WR). The entire line is at grade. Trains are differentiated as slow and fast locals. Slow trains stop at all stations, while fast ones stop at important stations only and are preferable over longer distances. Trains usually start from and terminate at important stations. The section from Churchgate to Virar is a

Quadruple track A quadruple-track railway (also known as a four-track railway) is a railway line consisting of four parallel tracks with two tracks used in each direction. Quadruple-track railways can handle large amounts of traffic, and so are used on very bus ...

. An EMU car shed has been built between

Nala Sopara Nala Sopara or Nallasopara (Pronunciation: aːla sopaɾa formerly known as Sopara or Supara, is a town within the Mumbai Metropolitan Region. The town lies in the Palghar district of Maharashtra, India and is governed by Vasai-Virar Municipal ...

and

which is the largest car shed in

Asia Asia (, ) is one of the world's most notable geographical regions, which is either considered a continent in its own right or a subcontinent of Eurasia, which shares the continental landmass of Afro-Eurasia with Africa. Asia covers an area ...

. A repair shop for EMUs is situated at

. There are also EMU car sheds at

Mumbai Central Mumbai Central (formerly Bombay Central, station code: MMCT) is a major railway station on the Western line, situated in Mumbai, Maharashtra in an area known by the same name. It serves as a major stop for both Local and Inter-City/Express tr ...

and

Kandivali Kandivali (Pronunciation: aːn̪d̪iʋəliː formerly Khandolee is a neighbourhood in the north of Mumbai, Maharashtra, India and has a large Marathi and Koli population followed by Gujarati population living in small areas. The area also ...

History

Suburban service on what is now the Western line was offered by the

Bombay, Baroda and Central India Railway The Bombay, Baroda and Central India Railway (reporting mark BB&CI) was a company incorporated in 1855 to undertake the task of constructing railway lines between Bombay to the erstwhile Baroda State, that became the present-day Baroda (Vadoda ...

, which began running steam trains in 1867.WR brings Dahanu closer to city today – Times Of India
Retrieved on 2013-07-16. Rakes operating on DC electricity were introduced on 5 January 1928.

Leslie Wilson (politician) Sir Leslie Orme Wilson, (1 August 1876 – 29 September 1955) was a Royal Marines officer, Conservative politician, and colonial governor. He served as Governor of Bombay from 1923 to 1926 and as Governor of Queensland from 1932 to 1946. Per ...

, the then-Governor of Bombay inaugurated the line running between Colaba and

, in the presence of 700 invitees.Citizens inconvenienced by Western Railway mega block
{{webarchive, url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120206155233/http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/city/mumbai/Citizens-inconvenienced-by-Western-Railway-mega-block/articleshow/11773922.cms , date=6 February 2012 . Articles.timesofindia.indiatimes.com (2012-02-06). Retrieved on 2015-01-17. The proposal to ply

Electric Multiple Unit An electric multiple unit or EMU is a multiple-unit train consisting of self-propelled carriages using electricity as the motive power. An EMU requires no separate locomotive, as electric traction motors are incorporated within one or a numbe ...

(EMU) trains between Dahanu and Churchgate was approved in the 2012–13

Railway Budget Railway budget of India was the Annual Financial Statement of the state-owned Indian Railways, which handles rail transport in India. It was presented every year by the Minister of Railways, representing the Ministry of Railways, in the Parliam ...

. In March 2013, 18 MEMU services ran between Virar and Dahanu daily. On 16 April 2013, the 160th anniversary of the Indian Railways,Churchgate-Dahanu local all set to roll from Tuesday – Mumbai – DNA
{{webarchive, url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130419043919/http://www.dnaindia.com/mumbai/1822510/report-churchgate-dahanu-local-all-set-to-roll-from-tuesday , date=19 April 2013 . Dnaindia.com (2013-04-15). Retrieved on 2013-07-16. Railway Minister Pawan Kumar Bansal inaugurated the first EMU service between Churchgate and Dahanu Road. The first Churchgate-Dahanu local was flagged off around 10:47am and arrived at Churchgate at 1:44pm. Prior to the launch of this service, EMU services on WR only ran on the 60 km stretch between Churchgate and Virar. The Western Line transported 127.94 crore passengers (1.28 billion) in the 2016-17 fiscal year. This is higher than the population of India according to the 2011 Census, which was recorded as 121.01 crores. During the same period, Western Railway sold 270.3 million tickets and 13.7 million season passes, earning a total revenue of {{INRConvert, 818.48, c from its suburban rail operations.{{cite web, title=Andheri remains WR's busiest station, accounts for 9% of tickets sold, url=http://www.dnaindia.com/mumbai/report-andheri-remains-wr-s-busiest-station-accounts-for-9-of-tickets-sold-2387221, website=Daily News & Analysis, access-date=9 April 2017, date=8 April 2017, url-status=live, archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170409172914/http://www.dnaindia.com/mumbai/report-andheri-remains-wr-s-busiest-station-accounts-for-9-of-tickets-sold-2387221, archive-date=9 April 2017, df=dmy-all

Timeline

* 12 April 1887: The BB commences daily service between Virar and Backbay * 1870: Churchgate station opened * 1873: Colaba Terminus commissioned * 5 January 1928: First electric train runs between Colaba & Borivili * 1930: Colaba station closed * 1936: Steam engines are withdrawn from service; Borivili–Virar section electrified * 2 March 1961: Introduction of 9-car trains * 1972: Total number of services crosses the 500 mark * 1986: Introduction of 12-car trains * 1992: Introduction of special trains for ladies and reserved seating for seniors * 1993: Introduction of special handicapped compartment * 2003: Total number of services crosses the 1,000 mark * 2007: Indian Railways' first ATVMs introduced on WR; DC-AC conversion of Borivili–Virar section completed * 21 November 2009 : Introduction of 15-car rakes * November 2011: DC-AC conversion of Borivili–Vile Parle section complete * 5 February 2012 : Conversion from DC to AC traction completed * 16 April 2013 : Extension of line from Virar to Dahanu Road * 27 November 2016 : 37th station,

Ram Mandir railway station Ram Mandir railway station (station code: RMAR) is a railway station on the Western and Harbour lines of the Mumbai Suburban Railway, serving the Oshiwara locality. The station is located in between Jogeshwari railway station and Goregaon rail ...

at Oshiwara was opened between Goregaon and Jogeshwari station. * 25 December 2017 : The first air-conditioned suburban train service in India began at 10:32 AM departing from Borivali to Churchgate.

Stations

(Names in bold indicate that the station is a fast train stop.) {, class="wikitable" style="text-align:center; width:65%;" , - ! colspan="4" , Western line , - ! style="width:1%;" , # ! style="width:5%;" , Station Name ! style="width:1%;" , Station Code ! style="width:5%;" , Connections , - , 1, , {{rws, Churchgate, , C/CCG , , Metro Line 3 , - , 2, , {{rws, Marine Lines‡, , MEL, , None , - , 3, , {{rws, Charni Road‡, , CYR, , None , - , 4, , {{rws, Grant Road‡, , GTR, , Metro Line 3 , - , 5, , {{rws, Mumbai Central, , BCL , ,

and Metro Line 3 , - , 6, , {{rws, Mahalaxmi, , MX, , Metro Line 3 and Monorail Line 1 , - , 7, , {{rws, Lower Parel , , PL, , None , - , 8, , {{rws, Prabhadevi, , PBHD, , {{rws, Parel^†
( Central line) , - , 9, , {{rws, Dadar, , D/DDR , ,

and Central line , - , 10, , {{rws, Matunga Road, , MRU, , None , - , 11, , {{rws, Mahim, , Mahim Junction, , MM, ,

Harbour line The Harbour line is a branch line of the Mumbai Suburban Railway operated by Central Railway. It was named so because it catered to the eastern neighbourhoods along the city's natural harbour. Its termini are Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj Termin ...

, - , 12, , {{rws, Bandra, , B/BA , ,

and Metro Line 2 , - , 13, , {{rws, Khar Road, , KHAR, ,

, - , 14, , {{rws, Santacruz, , STC, ,

, - , 15, , {{rws, Vile Parle, , VLP, ,

, - , 16, , {{rws, Andheri, , AD/ADH , ,

and Metro Line 1 , - , 17, , {{rws, Jogeshwari, , JOS, ,

and Metro Line 6 , - , 18, , {{rws, Ram Mandir, , RMAR, ,

, - , 19, , {{rws, Goregaon, , G/GMN, ,

, - , 20, , {{rws, Malad, , MDD , , None , - , 21, , {{rws, Kandivali, , KILE, , None , - , 22, , {{rws, Borivali, , BO/BVI , ,

, - , 23, , {{rws, Dahisar, , DIC, , None , - , 24, , {{rws, Mira Road, , MIRA, , None , - , 25, , {{rws, Bhayandar, , BY/BYR , ,

, - , 26, , {{rws, Naigaon, , NG/NIG , , None , - , 27, , {{rws, Vasai Road, , BS/BSR , ,

and Central line , - , 28, , {{rws, Nallasopara, , NS/NSP , , None , - , 29, , {{rws, Virar, , V/VR , ,

, - , 30, , {{rws, Vaitarna, , VTN , , None , - , 31, , {{rws, Saphale, , SAH , , None , - , 32, , {{rws, Kelve Road, , KLV , , None , - , 33, , {{rws, Palghar, , PLG , , None , - , 34, , {{rws, Umroli, , UOI , , None , - , 35, , {{rws, Boisar, , BOR , , None , - , 36, , {{rws, Vangaon, , VGN , , None , - , 37, , {{rws, Dahanu Road, , DRD , , None ‡ indicates the stations which Fast Up trains (to Churchgate) skip from around 5PM to 8PM. †A footbridge links Prabhadevi to Parel on the Central line. Churchgate railway station is the terminus station at the south end of Mumbai city. In Mumbai, Western Line (WR) suburban trains use this station as terminus. Long distance trains and goods trains terminate at Mumbai Central railway station instead. Above list of stations is mentioned from south end going towards northern suburban areas falling on WR corridor. New Andheri East Railway Station

Electrification

Western Railway's EMU fleet consists of EMUs running on AC 25 kV power. WR uses seven 9-car rakes. The Western line began running electric trains with DC power on 5 January 1928.{{cite web, url=http://www.dnaindia.com/mumbai/report-direct-current-local-to-chug-into-sunset-on-feb-4-1644870, title=Direct current local to chug into sunset on Feb 4, date=2 February 2012, work=

Daily News and Analysis Publications established in 2005 Newspapers published in Mumbai English-language newspapers published in India Daily newspapers published in India Essel Group 2005 establishments in Maharashtra ...

, access-date=16 September 2014, url-status=live, archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140916063303/http://www.dnaindia.com/mumbai/report-direct-current-local-to-chug-into-sunset-on-feb-4-1644870, archive-date=16 September 2014, df=dmy-all On 5 February 2012, WR finished converting the entire Western line from the earlier used 1,500 V DC to 25 kV AC power. The entire power conversion project cost about {{INR500

crore A crore (; abbreviated cr) denotes ten million (10,000,000 or 107 in scientific notation) and is equal to 100 lakh in the Indian numbering system. It is written as 1,00,00,000 with the local 2,2,3 style of digit group separators (one lakh is e ...

. Since 25 kV AC power is 17 times stronger than DC, people riding on top of the trains will be killed if they come into contact with the overhead wires. The project was also expected to improve the punctuality of train services, make them energy-efficient and allow a greater number of 12-coach and 15-coach trains to ply. Post-conversion, local trains will be able to achieve speeds of 100 km/h with ease. The next step would be to convert the remaining 9-coach trains to 12-coach ones, thus augmenting the carrying capacity by 33%. The system will need less maintenance. While using DC traction, 22 substations provided power to suburban trains on the Western line. Since switching over to AC traction, substations at Mahalaxmi, Bandra, Jogeshwari, Borivli and Vasai supply 25 kV power to local trains.

Services

As of 27 March 2012, the Western line has approximately 1,290 local services running which carry about 3.55 million commuters every day. These 1290 local services are operated using 80 trains. Western Railways' EMUs are in 12 car and 15 car formations. The first 9-car service on the Western line ran on 2 March 1961. The 9-car service has since been phased out and the last service ran on the Western line on 20 November 2012. However, 10 services (six on CR and four on WR) were still operated as 9-car even after that date as the track is shared by the Western line and the Harbour line. Harbour line platforms are too short to accommodate longer trains. In 2010, 15 car services between Churchgate and Virar were introduced. They halt at all the stations between Borivli and Virar, and do not halt at any stations between Churchgate and Dadar. 15-coach trains are used in non-peak hours. They cannot be used in peak hours because the station platforms are too narrow to handle the increased foot traffic. {, style="margin:0 auto; text-align:center;" class="wikitable" , - ! No. of coaches !! No. of Services , - , Harbour Locals , , 110 , - , 12 , , 1,150 , - , 15 , , 30 , - ! Total , , 1,290

Historical

The following table shows the number of services and daily ridership on the Western line throughout its history.WR brings Dahanu closer to city today – Times Of India
Articles.timesofindia.indiatimes.com (2013-04-16). Retrieved on 2013-07-16. {, class="wikitable" , - ! Year !! No. of Services !! Daily Ridership , - , 1867 , , 6 , , No data , - , 1990–91 , , 866 , , 2.3 million , - , 1991–92 , , 900 , , 2.5 million , - , 2000–01 , , 961 , , 2.82 million , - , 16 April 2013 , , 1305 , , 3.6 million

Facilities

Escalators

WR has escalators at 26 stations including some main stations like Borivali, Andheri, Dadar, Vasai Road and Virar for the common people. This helps the physically challenged and senior citizens.

FOBs and Subways

As of 29 April 2013, there are 102 foot over bridges (FOB)â€‹By June, escalators on 3 Western Railway stations – Times Of India
Articles.timesofindia.indiatimes.com (2013-04-29). Retrieved on 2013-07-16. and 8 subways on the Western line.

Train Management System

The Train Management System (TMS) is used by both staff and passengers to monitor the location of trains. TMS enables commuters to know what trains will be arriving in the next 10 minutes. The system was implemented on the Western line in 2004.

Wi-Fi Facility

Free Wi-Fi facility from the Indian Railways (RailWire) is provided at some stations of the Western Line like Churchgate, Mumbai Central, Dadar, Bandra, Khar Road, Andheri, Borivali, Bhayander, Vasai Road and Virar.

Fatalities

In 2011, 1,313 commuters died in accidents on the Western line, mainly via trespassing on ten particular stretches of track. Since mid-February 2012,

Railway Protection Force Railway Protection Force is a security force under the ownership of Indian Railways, Ministry of Railways, Government of India established by the Railway Protection Force Act, 1957; enacted by the Indian Parliament for "the better protection ...

(RPF) personnel patrol the areas from 7am-11am and 5pm-10pm, the peak times for such incidents. Initially, they used posters in an education campaign and only cautioned offenders. They later escalated to arresting people.{{cite news , url=http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/city/mumbai/Minor-drop-in-deaths-on-tracks-of-Western-Railways/articleshow/12497419.cms , work=The Times Of India , title=Minor drop in deaths on tracks of Western Railways – The Times of India , url-status=live , archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180108120959/https://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/city/mumbai/Minor-drop-in-deaths-on-tracks-of-Western-Railways/articleshow/12497419.cms , archive-date=8 January 2018 , df=dmy-all

References

{{reflist, colwidth=30em {{Mumbai topics {{Railways in Western India {{Mumbai - Suburban Railway, Western Mumbai Suburban Railway lines Railway lines opened in 1984 Rail transport in Mumbai Transport in Vasai-Virar Transport in Mira-Bhayandar Transport in Mumbai Transport in Palghar

History

Timeline

Stations

Electrification

Services

Historical

Facilities

Escalators

FOBs and Subways

Train Management System

Wi-Fi Facility

Fatalities

See also

References