Mumbai’s most ambitious metro line to transform travel

Mumbai’s ambitious Metro 3 project is set to open soon. Expected to make commuting easier in India’s financial capital, the much-awaited underground Metro will have three terminuses.The Line 3 corridor, running from Aarey to Cuffe Parade, will be opened in phases this year, with Prime Minister Narendra Modi inaugurating integrated trial runs for the first phase during his impending visit to the city.Project authority Mumbai Metro Rail Corporation (MMRC) plans to commence Phase I operations, from Aarey to BKC, in May, an extension of services to Worli by July (referred to as Phase II in this TOI+ report for clarity and ease), and the entire corridor, up to Cuffe Parade, by September.Most of the work for Phase I has been completed, except for minor finishing, cleaning, signage installation, and system-related tasks. Once integrated trials commence, we will obtain various certifications,” said MMRC managing director Ashwini Bhide, who is also in charge of the Coastal Road project as additional municipal commissioner.On the likely three-month gap between the start of integrated trials and the commissioning of the first phase, she said trials on the entire Phase I stretch are necessary to ensure the system’s reliability and safety before commercial operations start.Limited trials on the corridor had begun last October, the first taking place on October 8, between MIDC and Vidyanagari stations, spanning 8km across six stations (the total distance covered by the train was 17km since it returned to the Santacruz Electronics Export Processing Zone or Seepz).