From Glitches To Roof-Climbing: Disruptions Snarl Mumbai’s Suburban Train Services

Commuters on Mumbai’s suburban railway network faced major delays and widespread inconvenience on Monday, as multiple disruptions crippled services on both the Western and Harbour lines. The first working day of the week turned into a frustrating ordeal for thousands of daily local passengers due to two point failures on the Western line and a separate incident on the Harbour line.

First Disruption at Virar

According to sources, services on the Western Railway suburban line were first hit around 10:45 am, when a point failure at Virar caused a halt in train movement. Technical teams managed to resolve the issue by 11:40 am, but the hour-long disruption had already triggered significant delays and cancellations. Several trains were stalled or rerouted, and the resulting ripple effect impacted services well into the afternoon.

Second Glitch at Bandra Affects Harbour Line

Just as the situation began to stabilise, a second point failure struck at Bandra around 1:45 pm, this time affecting the Harbour line. Both up and down services were delayed by 10 to 15 minutes, further aggravating commuter frustration. Regular passengers voiced concerns over the repeated breakdowns, questioning the reliability of the suburban rail network despite weekly maintenance blocks carried out by Western Railway. However, officials claimed that by evening, train services had resumed and were running normally. But passengers reported that trains departing from Churchgate towards the suburbs were running nearly 10 minutes late, adding to the chaos for office-goers heading home after a long day.

Vashi Incident Halts Harbour Line Again

To make matters worse, a separate incident occurred on the Harbour line at Vashi station around 5:07 pm when a person climbed onto the roof of a Panvel–Wadala local train. Authorities immediately halted train operations and switched off the Overhead Electric (OHE) supply to prevent any harm. Services were suspended for approximately 14 minutes, until the individual was deboarded by railway staff and services resumed at 5:21 pm. According to sources, after being brought down from the roof, the individual was sent to a nearby hospital due to burn injuries.

Commuter Frustration Over Repeated Breakdowns

The series of disruptions, coming one after another throughout the day, severely impacted one of the busiest suburban rail networks. "While officials managed to restore services in each case, the back-to-back incidents highlighted persistent vulnerabilities in the system" said a frequent local train commuter.