Passengers travelling through Bandra Terminus in Mumbai are set to get more dedicated space for waiting and ticketing, as the Western Railway is developing a new passenger holding area at the station. The facility will span 2,625 square metres and will have capacity for around 3,700 passengers.
Western Railway announced the project on its official X handle on September 16, stating the facility is being built to ensure “better crowd management and a more organised passenger experience.” The holding area is likely to help manage increased passenger footfall, particularly during peak travel time and festive seasons.
What services will passengers get?
According to Western Railway, the new holding area will have dedicated spaces for passenger movement along with ticketing zones, toilets, drinking water taps and information display screens, besides other important amenities.
Western Railway stated that these facilities will help manage higher passenger footfall during “peak and festive seasons”.
Ticketing zones with UTS counters and ATVMs
The facility will also have a dedicated ticketing area. According to a report by The Indian Express, a 285-square-metre ticketing zone is planned with eight Unreserved Ticketing System (UTS) counters, six Automatic Ticket Machines (ATVMs) and 10 workstations.
The report put the estimated project cost at 16.43 crore. It also added that bollards, portable signage and reflective lights are planned outside the holding zone. Traffic marshals will also be deployed to restrict unauthorised vehicle entry.
The Indian Express also mentioned in its report that Bandra Terminus currently has a small 370-square-metre holding area in the east circulation with capacity for around 600 passengers.
The station witnesses an average daily footfall of around 40,000 passengers and manages nearly 22 long-distance trains a day, as per the report. The project site is under construction and was examined by Western Railway’s Mumbai Central Division Railway Manager Pankaj Singh in August, it added.
Part of Railways’ wider crowd-management plan
The Bandra Terminus project is also part of Indian Railway’s broader plan to create permanent passenger holding areas at busy stations.
As per PIB, in April 2026, Bandra Terminus was identified among 76 railway stations across India for permanent holding areas. Seven of these are in Maharashtra, namely Bandra Terminus, Lokmanya Tilak Terminus, Nagpur, Dadar, Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj Terminus, Pune and Nashik Road.
The Ministry of Railways said such holding areas are planned to decongest platforms and provide organised spaces furnished with facilities like seating, ticketing services, information displays, toilets, display board for information and security checks. The crowd management measures also include designated holding areas for passengers without tickets or with waitlisted tickets.
The latest Western Railway announcement now provides the Bandra-specific scale of the project, including its 2,625 square-metre area and capacity for around 3,700 passengers.