In order to increase the train speed on the busy Mumbai-Howrah route, the 183.94 km long Bhusawal-Manmad 3rd line project is going on in full swing.
Bhusawal-Pachora (71.72 km) stretch is completed. Chalisgaon-Pimparkhed and Nandgaon-Manmad sections are near completion. At the same time, work on Pachora-Chalisgaon and Pimparkhed-Nandgaon sections is in progress, informed the Ministry of Railways on Wednesday.
The Mumbai-Howrah railway line is also known as the Mumbai–Kolkata line. It connects Kolkata and Mumbai (via Nagpur). In 1900, the 1,968-kilometre-long railway line was opened to traffic.
It is operated by South Eastern Railway, South East Central Railway, and Central Railway and its operating speed is up to 130 km/h.
Geographically, the railway line cuts across the central parts of the country in an east–west direction. It crosses the plains of lower West Bengal, the Chota Nagpur Plateau (southern part), the Deccan Plateau, the Western Ghats, and finally the Western Coastal Plains.
Part of the Golden Quadrilateral
The Mumbai-Howrah route is a part of the Golden Quadrilateral. The routes linking the four major metropolises (New Delhi, Mumbai, Chennai, and Kolkata), along with their diagonals, are known as the Golden Quadrilateral. They bear nearly half the freight and nearly half the passenger traffic. However, they form only 16 per cent of the length.
The entire line is electrified.