Mumbai Metro-7 line to have 14 stations along Western Express Highway

Mumbai: The Mumbai Metropolitan Region Development Authority (MMRDA) has planned smaller stations for the Metro-7 corridor (Andheri east to Dahisar east). 14 stations along the Western Express Highway (WEH) will have up to four types of station models, confirmed sources.

The officials are still finalising the designs for the stations.  However, according to experts, stations with less space may get congested and won't be able to accommodate daily passengers.

“Since the stations are on WEH, we do not have space to build larger stations like Metro line 1 (Versova-Ghatkopar). Bigger stations will affect the traffic movement on WEH. Thus, instead of three piers, the stations for Metro-7 will be built on a single pier. The stations would be smaller as compared to Andheri metro,” said a senior MMRDA official.  

Meanwhile, transport experts have raised doubts on the idea of smaller stations. “With new metro lines and corridors linking more places, the commuters are going to increase in the next two years. Thus, stations with less capacity will get crowded easily,” said Ashok Datar, a transport expert.

Earlier in October, the authority had arranged a design competition for the metro 7 stations and called in architects, colleges, and consultants to take participate. So far the authority is accessing around seven designs submitted by the different participants.

“The interiors will be designed by us, the new design will only be needed for the exterior look of the station. We are yet to finalise the design,” added the official.  Metro-7 is a Rs 6,208 crore project and is expected to be operational in 2019.

Recently, the authority has planned to increase the labour to boost the speed of work for the corridor.