Commuters on the Seawoods Darave-Belapur-Uran route will soon get some relief as Central Railway is likely to add 20 additional local train services starting October, following the proposed inauguration of the Navi Mumbai International Airport (NMIA). The increased services — 10 up and 10 down trains — will be included in the new timetable set for October, taking the total number of train services on the route from 40 to 60.
At present, trains on this route run at one-hour intervals during peak hours and 90-minute intervals during non-peak hours, due to comparatively lower passenger numbers than the main, harbour, and trans-harbour lines. With the upcoming opening of NMIA and the completion of Targhar railway station near the airport, passenger traffic on the Uran route is expected to rise.
Daily ridership figures highlight Belapur as the busiest station with 1.35 lakh passengers, followed by Nerul (93,731), Seawoods Darave (52,016), Bamandongri (19,867), Kharkopar (12,684), Nhava Sheva (4067), Dronagiri (2103), and Uran. The additional services are expected to ease travel and reduce congestion for commuters on the route.
