Western Railway Completes 628-Metre Vaitarna Bridge for Virar-Dahanu Project
Western Railway has completed the construction of the 628-metre-long Vaitarna rail bridge over the Vaitarna River, marking a major milestone in the Rs 3,578-crore Virar–Dahanu quadrupling project. The completion, reported on July 15, 2026, pushes the overall physical progress of the suburban rail expansion past the 60 percent mark.
The newly finished structure, designated as Bridge No. 92, is one of the most critical components of the 64-kilometre-long corridor. The project involves laying two additional railway lines alongside the existing double line between Virar and Dahanu Road to expand capacity.
According to railway officials, the entire quadrupling project is currently on track for completion by March 2028. Work on the second major river crossing in the area, Bridge No. 93, is progressing rapidly and is expected to be finished by December 2026.
Once fully commissioned, the project is expected to significantly increase the capacity of the corridor. This will allow Western Railway to operate more suburban and long-distance trains while reducing congestion on one of its busiest routes.
In addition to the bridge work, Western Railway has made progress on station infrastructure along the corridor. At the Virar station, Platforms 3A and 4A have been widened and extended, and the new Platform 5A, designed for 12-coach suburban trains, has been completed.
New station buildings have also been constructed at Vaitarna and Kelve Road. Meanwhile, major station redevelopment work remains underway at other stations, including Palghar and Boisar. Passenger facilities such as foot overbridges, lifts, escalators, and subways are also being advanced. Additionally, the main civil work for the road overbridge at Level Crossing No. 55A has been completed, with finishing works currently in progress.
Vilas Sopan Wadekar, the Chairman and Managing Director of the Mumbai Rail Vikas Corporation (MRVC), stated that the project gained momentum after key hurdles regarding land acquisition and statutory approvals were resolved. These clearances included crucial forest and mangrove permissions, alongside a clearance from the Nuclear Power Corporation of India Limited (NPCIL) for land required to build a new goods yard at Boisar.
