THANE: Residents of Ghodbunder road, Wagle estate and Pokhran could largely benefit from the new railway station coming up between Thane-Mulund as they will save time and distance presently incurred while travelling to the existing Thane station, officials informed.

Presently, GB road, Wagle estate commuters have to travel to the old station and cross the Teen hath junction that often adds nearly 15-20 minutes of their travel time accessing the congested lanes leading to the platforms.

However, the Thane corporation is constructing a network of three elevated roads connecting the new railway station between Thane and Mulund from Teen Haath naka and LBS road which will provide a faster connect for railway commuters from Ghodbunder road and fringe areas of Thane-Mulund, Shiv Sena MP Rajan Vichare informed the media after a review of the works on Thursday.

“The elevated roads being constructed will ensure the new station is accessed within five minutes from Teen Haath naka, thereby, saving commuters from having to spend extra time and distance to access the existing congested Thane railway station. The construction on the new station will be completed by December 2025,” said Vichare.

The new station was proposed in early 2000 to decongest the existing Thane station that registers a daily footfall of around seven lakh. Later, the Thane corporation incorporated the project in the Smart City initiative and sent a Rs 289 crore proposal to the central government which was okayed by the then railway minister Suresh Prabhu. The project faced initial hurdles including a court stay that was lifted in 2023, paving way for the project’s fast completion.

Vichare said the railway station will come up on a 14.8 acre land within the Thane regional Mental Hospital premises along the Eastern Express Highway and will have three platforms for suburban trains arriving to and departing from Mumbai and two passenger bridges connecting both sides of the station. Around three acre land will be used to lay railway tracks and construct an administrative building that will be connected to an elevated road with three exits on the LBS road and the Eastern Express highway. The new railway station is being constructed on west side of existing rail lines between Thane and Mulund which will make it nearer for residents from these areas.

Source: timesofindia.indiatimes.com