Mumbai: Submarine points to ensure waterlogging doesn’t hinder train ops

Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis and Railway Minister Ashwini Vaishnaw at the event yesterday

Flooding-related snarls on Mumbai's railway lines may be a thing of the past with the innovation of "submarine points" where track points - configurations that allow trains to switch between parallel tracks - are not disturbed by waterlogging. The innovation is being patented by Indian Railways. The reduction in point machine failures during flooding significantly improves operational efficiency and will not lead to the detention of local trains, Railway Minister Ashwini Vaishnaw said on Friday.

Speaking about AC local trains, Vaishnaw said the 238 AC local trains for the city may initially come as an addition to existing rakes that will be slowly phased out. He said these rakes have been uniquely designed keeping in mind the needs of Mumbai's commuters, promising a more comfortable and reliable travel experience.

Vaishnaw also announced the launch of Kavach 5.0, a state-of-the-art safety and signalling system tailored for the suburban section, which is expected to significantly reduce the inter-train headway of locals, enabling more trains to run safely and efficiently.

A track point that cannot be disturbed by waterlogging

In addition, 132 stations across Maharashtra are being redeveloped under the Amrit Bharat Station Scheme. Of the 1300 stations nationwide under this initiative, many are nearing completion, with significant progress reported at many others. Work on about 104 stations across India has been completed.

Mumbai One card

Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis on Friday announced a single transport card ‘Mumbai One' for the Mumbai Metropolitan Region on the lines of London's Oyster card. The architecture of this will be ready in a month's time.

"Commuters will be able to use the single card for suburban railway, Metro, Monorail, buses and other forms of transport in the Mumbai Metropolitan Region. We had discussions with the railway minister for railway onboarding and work will be completed in a month," Fadnavis said.

Konkan Railway merger

Speaking about Konkan Railway, Fadnavis said that he had requested Railways to merge the zone with Indian Railways to improve its finances.