5 more AC local trains likely to arrive by March after 2 missed deadline

Currently, there are 96 AC train services on the Mumbai Division.

Each train currently operates an average of 10 services or trips per day, so the addition of five more rakes would result in a significant boost in services by 50.

Sources within the Western Railway (WR) indicated that the production unit of ICF in Chennai  was initially expected to deliver these five trains in November 2023. However, this deadline was pushed to January 2024 and has now been extended further to March 2024.

The ICF is responsible for manufacturing the AC local trains and other premium trains including the Vande Bharat.

Despite these delays, Mumbai commuters have responded positively to the introduction of AC local trains on suburban sections of both the central and western railways.

According to data from the Mumbai division of WR, since the introduction of AC train services, the total number of commuters has exceeded 3 crore as of January 31.

Officials are optimistic that with an increased number of services following the availability of new AC rakes, the ridership will further improve.

Additionally, the WR Mumbai division is working on increasing the length of platforms to accommodate 15-car local trains up to Churchgate station on both fast and slow lines.

Verma mentioned that they are assessing the feasibility of extending platforms up to Churchgate, which, if successful, could increase the carrying capacity of local trains by allowing the conversion of 12-car train services to 15-car trains.