Mumbai’s long-distance commuters will face changes this week as the Netravati Express, one of the city’s busiest trains connecting Kerala to Maharashtra, has been temporarily diverted. Officials from Central Railway confirmed that train number 16346, Thiruvananthapuram Central–Lokmanya Tilak Terminus (LTT) Netravati Express, will terminate at Thane station instead of its usual LTT destination between 21 and 25 September.
This operational change has been necessitated by ongoing infrastructure and yard works at the Lokmanya Tilak Terminus, which is among the most congested terminals in Mumbai’s suburban east corridor. Authorities clarified that the temporary diversion will not affect the train’s scheduled departure from Thiruvananthapuram Central, but passengers will need to disembark at Thane during the notified period. The impact of this move will be felt across both long-distance and suburban commuters. Thane, already a major junction for Central Railway’s suburban services, will now handle additional passenger loads from the Netravati Express. Experts have highlighted that while the diversion may ease pressure at LTT during works, it could increase crowding at Thane platforms, which are already stretched during peak hours.
Passenger associations have raised concerns that those booked till LTT may face extended travel times, as they will need to rely on connecting suburban trains, taxis, or app-based cabs to reach their final destinations. Officials, however, reassured that adequate announcements and passenger assistance measures will be made available at Thane to ease the transition. The Netravati Express holds a crucial role in linking the coastal regions of Kerala and Karnataka with Mumbai. Its rerouting underscores the broader challenge of balancing long-distance rail operations with the city’s surging suburban traffic. With Mumbai continuously battling capacity constraints, infrastructure modernisation works at nodes like LTT are viewed as necessary, even if short-term diversions inconvenience passengers.
Data from the railways indicate that over 80,000 passengers pass through LTT daily, with the station handling more than 100 long-distance services. Temporary diversions such as this highlight the pressing need for decentralised terminals and greater investment in eco-friendly, resilient infrastructure to meet the demands of a growing metropolis. Transport planners argue that while such disruptions are inevitable during upgrade works, they underline the urgency of creating integrated mobility solutions. With Mumbai pushing towards sustainable and equitable transport, measures like decentralising long-distance rail operations, improving last-mile connectivity, and reducing overdependence on a single terminal could ease future bottlenecks.
For now, passengers using the Netravati Express will need to account for the terminus change and plan their onward journeys accordingly. The diversion, while temporary, is another reminder of the infrastructural stress Mumbai endures in its daily quest to balance suburban lifelines with national connectivity.
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