Mumbai: Mira Road to finally get Metro link before year-end

Kashigaon Metro station in Mira Road

By the end of the year, Mira Road - one of the most crowded areas outside Mumbai - will become the first such location to be connected by Metro in Phase 1. Overhead power lines will be activated, and train trials will begin on May 10. The Western Railway station at Mira Road is also being upgraded to handle rising passenger traffic. The new Kashigaon Metro station is located about 1.4 km east of the current Mira Road WR station.

Metro Line 9 is an extension of Red Line 7 from Andheri-Dahisar to Mira Bhayander, which will enable a direct Metro link from Andheri (WEH) to Kashigaon in the first phase and till Subhash Chandra Bose Stadium, Bhayandar West in the second phase. While the entire Red Line 9 has eight stations, including Dahisar, Pandurang Wadi, Miragaon, Kashigaon, Sai Baba Nagar, Meditiya Nagar, Shahid Bhagat Singh Garden and Subhash Chandra Bose Stadium, in the first phase, the first four stations till Kashigaon will be functional.

The MMRDA earlier this week notified citizens to exercise caution along Metro Line 9 (Dahisar to Kashigaon) as they plan to energise the Metro's 25,000v Overhead Traction Wires on May 10 along the 4.973 km stretch of its line. The energisation process will be followed by the resumption of full-scale, dynamic testing of the Metro trains that include trials of vital systems such as train movement, signalling, communication and safety in preparation for public commissioning.

The existing Western Railway station of Mira Road has a footfall of 1,31,764 per day, the station has one of the fastest-growing passenger traffic. It is also undergoing a massive upgrade by the Mumbai Railway Vikas Corporation (MRVC) with a 158.50m long and 10.70m wide elevated deck being constructed at the station, along with new north and middle foot over bridges and also its extension.

"Since horizontal expansion is not feasible, a deck-level grid is created under MUTP-3A as a vertical solution to enhance passenger convenience. By interconnecting these deck-level spaces with foot overbridges (FOBs) and providing escalators & elevators, we are ensuring smoother passenger movement, reducing platform congestion, and improving overall accessibility," a MRVC official said.

Commuter Speaks

Mira Bhayandar welcomes the new metro. This is the most important line in comparison to other lines since it was long-awaited. This line will be highly beneficial because it will connect all the important Mumbai suburbs till Andheri. The metro will help the overcrowded Mumbai suburban railway too. The Metro work has also been helpful and benefited Mira Road, as there has been a new flyover built for vehicles under it, commuter activist Shailesh Goyal said.

"The Metro and railway stations are quite far from each other. Couldn't they have planned it in a way to bring them closer? It would have made a big difference. Now that they're built at such a distance, we'll need a bus just to travel between the two. Still, this new Metro link is going to change the entire transport setup in the area," said Mehana Rizvi, a commuter.