Parel terminus file awaits Sadanand Gowda's nod.

The much-delayed Parel terminus plan is now in the final stage with project file now before the railway minister for his final approval, according to Central Railway officials.

The plan for a terminus at Parel was first proposed way back in 2009 as part of the Mumbai Urban Transport Project. The plan has been hanging fire since November last year and officials blamed this on the lack of political push.

The plan envisages a new platform on the west side, where one of the tracks that is currently used by freight trains will make way for the new 408-metre long structure. The down slow line (from CST to Parel and onwards) will run on the West of the new platform. Whereas the current down slow line would be truncated and converted into the terminal line where trains running only up to Parel will terminate and run back.

The plan for the new terminus, expected to cost Rs80-90 crore, includes skywalks. There will be one new skywalk running from Parel station and over the Western Railway lines leading to the numerous commercial complexes on the West.

This is good news for hundreds of thousands of office-goers working in the area which extends up to Worli. A connector is also planned along the east, linking the foot-overbridge and the skywalk. An elevated booking office will be located adjacent to the Elphinstone road bridge. Officials admit that working out the financial nitty-gritty also delayed the project.

The terminus project is part of a larger plan for fifth and sixth lines between Kurla and CST that could cost upwards of Rs. 900 crore. Some of the funds would be used for land acquisition.

'The railway board wanted the plan for the fifth and sixth lines together with the terminus project, as a whole, rather than allow the terminus project separately. This resulted in a lot of time being wasted,' a senior Central Railway official said.

DNA