Western Railway has outlined an ambitious plan to nearly double its train handling capacity over the next five years, with a strong focus on Mumbai and five other strategic cities—Surat, Vadodara, Ahmedabad, Ujjain and Indore. The initiative forms part of a nationwide capacity augmentation programme covering 48 major urban centres aimed at modernising rail infrastructure and improving operational efficiency.
The proposed upgrades are designed to address persistent challenges related to congestion and punctuality while enhancing overall passenger experience. Key interventions include expansion of terminal facilities, creation of new maintenance depots and stabling lines, signalling modernisation, multi-tracking of busy corridors, and development of additional terminals in both urban and suburban areas.
In the Mumbai region, Western Railway plans to significantly scale up long-distance operations. The roadmap includes the introduction of approximately 65 additional mail and express trains, along with augmentation of existing services by nearly 70 coaches per day. These measures are expected to ease pressure on current services and support growing passenger demand.
Among the critical infrastructure projects is the Mumbai Central–Borivali sixth line under the Mumbai Urban Transport Project (MUTP-II), with an investment of Rs 919 crore. The Kandivali–Borivali section of this corridor is targeted for completion by January 2026. Parallel capacity enhancement works are also progressing on the Borivali–Virar corridor through the construction of fifth and sixth lines, as well as on the Virar–Dahanu Road section with the addition of third and fourth lines.
Collectively, these multi-tracking initiatives are intended to segregate suburban and long-distance train movements, a step that is expected to streamline operations, improve reliability, and create headroom for introducing more mainline services. Once completed, the projects are set to play a pivotal role in strengthening Western Railway’s network capacity and supporting the long-term mobility needs of some of the country’s fastest-growing urban regions.