Curation Team
THANE: After the train accident in Mumbra, in which four passengers lost their lives, questions were raised about the crowd in the local trains beyond the stations of Thane. With the aim of reducing crowd in local trains, Kalyan Lok Sabha MP Shrikant Shinde called a meeting of senior officials of MMRDA in which it was decided to extend Metro Line 5, which is coming up to Kalyan from Thane via Bhiwandi, further to Ambernath via Ulhasnagar.
Shrikant Shinde told TOI, “The Thane-Bhiwandi-Kalyan Metro Line 5 project will now be extended from Durgadi Naka, via Kalyan, along the Kalyan-Badlapur Road to reach Chikhloli Railway Station in Ambernath, which is centrally located between Ulhasnagar and Ambernath. This will ease commuting between Badlapur–Ambernath and Mumbai–Thane, reduce pressure on suburban trains, ensure faster transit, and contribute to savings in time, fuel, and environmental resources.”
Shinde also mentioned that, along with Metro Line 5, other infrastructure-related projects that are ongoing by MMRDA have been asked to speed up their work.
A high-level meeting was chaired on Friday by MMRDA commissioner Dr Sanjay Mukherjee at the MMRDA headquarters. Along with Shinde, local Shiv Sena MLAs Balaji Kinikar and Rajesh More were also present.
At the meeting, MMRDA was directed to expedite the preparation of a detailed development plan for this extension of Metro Line 5. It was decided that an integrated facility for both railway and metro services will be developed at Chikhloli, providing passengers with seamless, efficient, and synchronised travel options. With the expansion of both metro lines, direct metro services will become available to Ambernath, Ulhasnagar, and Shahad.
Along with Metro, instructions were given to expedite the remaining phases of the Kalyan Ring Road project to ensure its timely completion. A two-tier corridor is planned at Nevali, featuring a flyover at the first level and a metro viaduct above it. The tender process for this project will be initiated shortly. Once constructed, the flyover will facilitate smoother vehicular movement and help decongest traffic in the region.
In the meeting, a discussion was also held on the U-type road, which will be constructed in East Kalyan. The tender process for this project is also expected to commence shortly. At the meeting, Shinde also asked to fast-track the ongoing construction of the elevated flyover from Palm Resort to Vithalwadi passing through the Waldhuni River. During the meeting, discussions were also held regarding the acceleration of the Navi Mumbai–Badlapur access-controlled corridor.
