Commuters will have to change trains to travel from one line to the other on the 35-km stretch of Mumbai Metro Line 2A (Dahisar to DN Nagar) and Line 7 (Dahisar E to Andheri E). As per the Mumbai Metropolitan Region Development Authority (MMRDA), which is the project implementing authority, commuters will have to change trains at Dahisar, the common station for both Metro Lines 2A and 7. Explaining the rationale behind not running common trains on the entire 35-km stretch of both Metro lines, an official said, “Metro Line 2A and 7 will run parallel to the Western Express Highway (WEH) and Link Road in the suburbs. So running common Metro trains on both lines won’t serve any purpose as commuters won’t take a Metro for going from east to west or vice versa.” Currently, on the 20-km stretch between Aarey and Dhanukarwadi (Phase 1) on the combined Metro Lines 2A and 7, Metro service is operational. The shape of this partial route is like a horseshoe or a ring road. Which means, if one catches a train at Aarey, which is on Metro Line 7, he or she can go to Dhanukarwadi station on Line 2A without changing train at Dahisar. However, that won't be the case when Phase 2 of Metro Line 2A and 7 is fully opened to the public. The MMRDA plans to begin operations on entire Line 2A and 7 by this month. Currently, the remaining Phase 2 portion is being supervised by the Commissioner of Metro Rail Safety (CMRS). Once the safety clearance certificate is in place, commercial operations can begin. The final and last CMRS certification includes supervision of the tracks, signalling, electrical systems and civil works before opening the corridor for passengers. The two elevated corridors, once opened to the public, are expected to help reduce the crowds in local trains by 10-15 per cent. These two new lines will carry 3 lakh passengers per day, which is expected to go up to 11.31 lakh passengers by 2031. The trains will have six coaches, each with a carrying capacity of 380 passengers, and operate at a time gap of seven minutes. Bharat Earth Movers Limited (BEML) has manufactured the new Metro coaches.
