Thane’s Metro 4-4A corridor has missed the operational timeline announced during its trial run, prompting a protest by the Thane unit of the Nationalist Congress Party–Sharadchandra Pawar and renewed questions over when commuters will actually receive services. Transport minister Pratap Sarnaik has now said the Gaimukh–Kapurbawdi phase could become operational by the end of the year.
The protest was held near Chitalsar-Manpada station on the Wadala–Kasarvadavali–Gaimukh route, exactly a year after Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis and Deputy Chief Minister Eknath Shinde flagged off trial runs on September 22 last year. At the time, the government had indicated that operations would begin within three months.
The government had also announced that the Gaimukh–Cadbury Junction stretch would be made operational by 2026. However, Sarnaik said last week that the initial operational section would extend only between Gaimukh and Kapurbawdi. The change has led to questions about the route and the timelines being communicated to the public.
NCP-SP district president Manoj Pradhan, corporator Abhijit Pawar and other party members participated in the protest. Pradhan said the trial run had been presented with the visibility of an inauguration, even though it was a test operation, and questioned why services had not started a year later.
The political group also alleged that the trial-run event was linked to the civic election period and accused the ruling Mahayuti administration of making assurances that were not fulfilled. It further hinted at a possible nexus behind delays to the project. These allegations were made during the protest and were not independently established in the report.
The dispute has also widened to include Thane’s proposed integrated ring metro project. The NCP-SP questioned the feasibility of the ring project, pointing to the long delay in completing Metro 4-4A. The party asked how the larger project would progress if the existing corridor had not begun passenger operations after years of work.
For commuters along the Gaimukh, Manpada, Kasarvadavali and Kapurbawdi areas, the immediate issue is the difference between a trial run and regular service. A trial establishes the movement of trains under test conditions, while passenger operations require the relevant systems and approvals to be ready for regular public use. The report does not provide a revised detailed commissioning schedule or the reasons for the delay.
Sarnaik’s year-end target provides the latest publicly stated timeline for the first phase. Under that plan, the Gaimukh–Kapurbawdi section would begin operations before the remaining route towards Cadbury Junction. The minister’s statement is the next milestone commuters will be watching as the administration works towards commissioning the shortened first phase.
