Harbour line to take elevated route at Kurla

Existing Tracks Will Become Part Of CR's Main Line

    More than a century after operations began on the Harbour line, one of the most important stations on the route—Kurla—is set for a major change. 
    The Central Railway (CR) authorities have decided to build a 1.5-km elevated stretch, which will include new platforms, at Kurla for Harbour line services. This, in turn, will allow them to use the existing Harbour line tracks (platforms 7 and 8) as the fifth and sixth tracks between Parel and Kurla on the Main line. 
    Explaining the project, a senior CR official said: "We have decided to take the Harbour line tracks to an elevated level at Kurla due to lack of space for the fifth and sixth lines on the Main line. Once the elevated platforms are built, the existing Harbour line tracks at the ground level will be connected to the fifth and sixth lines going towards Chhatrapati Shivaji Terminus." 
    The elevated stretch would extend from Swadeshi Mills in the south (towards Chunabhatti) and close to Tilak Nagar station in the north. Officials said the work would start by April-May 2013 if things went according to plan. The project would take three years to be completed, they added. 
    As of now, there are eight platforms at Kurla station, of which numbers 7 and 8 are used for Harbour services. "The design will be similar to the one used for the elevated Sandhurst Road station. RITES will decide if the elevated platforms will be built of concrete, steel or a mix of both. The cost of building the elevated stretch is estimated to be Rs 70 crore," the official said. 
    The work, said sources, would be carried out in such a manner that Harbour line services would not be affected. Mumbai Rail Vikas Corporation (MRVC) will fund the project involving the fifth and sixth tracks, include the elevated Harbour line section. 
    Laying the fifth and sixth lines between Kurla and CST will cost around Rs 800-900 crore, excluding the expenditure to be incurred on the rehabilitation of those occupying the structures that would be affected. However, there are problems on the ground as CR will have to acquire 6,500 sq m of land for the tracks between Currey Road and CST alone. As a large number of buildings have to be removed on this stretch, the process can be a long-drawn one. 
    So, MRVC and CR have decided to take the fifth and sixth lines up to Parel, where a terminus is proposed in Phase I, to begin with. Around 8,000 sq m will have to acquired between Sion and Matunga on this stretch. 
    The fifth-sixth corridor already exists between Kurla & Thane and Diva & Kalyan; work has also begun on laying tracks between Thane & Diva. Once the project is completed, long-distance and goods trains will stop using the Fast corridor. This will allow the authorities to provide faster and more suburban services from Kalyan to CST. 
    The Harbour line was officially opened on December 12, 1910, between Kurla and Reay Road. 
    In 1925, the elevated stretch between Dockyard Road and Sandhurst Road was opened to provide connectivity to Victoria Terminus, as it was known in those days.