(All images by Andre J. Fanthome of Studio Noughts & Cross)
by Ron Bernthal
The Mumbai (formerly Bombay) Metropolitan Region Development Authority is continuing to expand its new and growing Metro system, and is set to open several of the newly designed metro stations. These stations are designed by architecture practice Studio Archohm. Mumbai metro stations have been designed with a variety of crucial details in mind, from vertical louvers that give a monolithic appearance to the actual frames that provide against much-needed rain and sun protection.
Studio Archohm says that Mumbai Metro is a symbol of the future, an opportunity to bind, an opportunity to communicate, to show metro stations as spaces for art – how to make transit an event and transition a celebration. Metro stations as windows to the city – multi modal intersections to clean up a city, and metro stations as a tribute to the people of Mumbai.
The proposed metro stations for the city feature naturally ventilated stations, using louvers to cut the harsh sun and light, yet maintain a certain lightness in structure and from. An attempt to give a singular identity to the metro stations is done in order to seek calmness in the urban chaos around us. The interiors feature a monochromatic color schemes pertaining to the specific line of the station, in order to align and orient a person to the station. The images in this article show the improvements at Bandongri station on Line 7 of Mumbai Metro. Station address is near Samta Nagar Police Station, Western Express Hwy, Kandivali East, Mumbai, Maharashtra 400101, India
The metro station color scheme orientates the city with its commuting system. The minimal interiors and materials keep the ‘building’ in the background of the commuters. All utilities, lights, and pipes have been hidden meticulously while remaining functional. Controlled use of glass and aluminum has been done to withstand the sea salt and heavy rainfall. Last but not least, the metro columns and the viaducts that span the entire Mumbai Metro system are marked with a crisp color line that adds add to the visual chaos of the city, but also as navigation signage.
“This was an apt opportunity to explore and express the power of design instead of the usual expectation of mere decoration.” said Sourabh Gupta, Principal architect, Studio Archohm. “The idea was to conceive an avant-garde system, a kit of parts that can adapt and still keep its identity intact.”
“We started with picking every pain point in the experience and the image of a station in this insanely dense and tight metropolitan morphology,” said Gupta. “Thereafter we systematically addressed each one of these issues with clean and clear architectural solutions. It was a challenge to maintain the aesthetics at the city level while being distinctive to the place and context at the local level. The access points, the entries, the art, and the graphics would make each space seemingly similar space into a powerful place for commuters from inside and the citizens from outside the station.”
Mumbai Metro with 10 lines, is an urban Mass Rapid Transit System (MRTS) being built to serve Mumbai, Maharashtra’s capital and largest city. Presently only Line 1 is fully operational, several lines are semi-operational, many more lines are under-construction, and several others are waiting for approval.
Its development has been entrusted to the Mumbai Metropolitan Region Development Authority (MMRDA), who in 2004 came out with a 146.5 km master plan with multiple lines. Due to various issues which range from policy paralysis (EPC vs PPP, metro rail vs monorail) to environmental issues), the MMRDA has so far only been able to develop 1 metro line in the suburbs connecting Versova – Andheri East – Ghatkopar.
In 2015, a new 118 km master plan was approved and the then incumbent government provided much needed impetus for the development of 2 lines: Dahisar East – Andheri East (Red Line) & Dahisar East – D.N. Nagar (Yellow Line) in addition to the Cuffe Parade – BKC – Aarey Colony (Aqua Line).
In June 2019, a new nodal agency called Maha Mumbai Metro Operations Corporation (MMMOCL) was established for operating and maintaining all Mumbai Metro services on lines owned by MMRDA. In September 2019, the MMRDA unveiled a new 337 km master plan for Maha Mumbai Metro’s network consisting of 10 lines (total of 17 sections).
Key Figures
Operational: 30.15 km | Under Construction: 150.25 km | Approved: 21.289 km | Proposed: 136.4 km
| Line | Terminals / Corridor | Length (Km) | Stations | Status |
| Line-1 | Verova – Andheri – Ghatkopar | 11.4 | 12 | Operational |
| Line-2A | Dahisar (E) – DN Nagar | 18.60 | 17 | Partially Operational |
| Line-2B | DN Nagar – Mandale | 23.64 | 22 | Under Construction |
| Line-3 | Cuffe Parade – BKC – Seepz – Aarey Colony | 33.50 | 27 | Under Construction |
| Line-4 | Wadala – Kasarawadavali | 32.32 | 32 | Under Construction |
| Line-4A | Kasarawadavali – Gaimukh (extn of Line-4) |
2.88 | 2 | Under Construction |
| Line-5 | Thane – Bhiwandi – Kalyan | 24.95 | 17 | 12.811 km Under Construction; Rest On-Hold |
| Line-6 | Swami Samarth Nagar – Vikhroli | 15.18 | 13 | Under Construction |
| Line-7 | Dahisar (E) – Andheri (E) | 16.5 | 14 | Partially Operational |
| Line-7A | Andheri (E) – CSI Airport (extn of Line-7) |
3.17 | 2 | Under Construction |
| Line-8 | CSIA – NMIA (Airport Connector) |
35 | 7 | Proposed |
| Line-9 | Dahisar (E) – Mira Bhayander (extn of Line-7) |
11.38 | 8 | Under Construction |
| Line-10 | Gaimukh – Shivaji Chowk in Mira Road (extn of Line-4) |
9.20 | 4 | Approved |
| Line-11 | Wadala – Chhattrapati Shivaji Maharaj Terminus (extn of Line-4) |
12.77 | 10 | Proposed |
| Line-12 | Kalyan – Taloja (extn of Line-5) |
20.7 | 17 | Proposed |
| Line-13 | Shivaji Chowk (Mira Road) – Virar | 23 | 20 | Proposed |
| Line-14 | Kanjurmarg – Badlapur | 45 | 40 | Proposed |
On February 28, 2020 – the MMRDA unveiled official line colors as part of a major branding exercise to establish style guidelines with help from Systra MVA Consulting.
Mumbai Metro – Operational Lines
Line-1 – Blue Line: Versova – Andheri – Ghatkopar (11.4 km, 12 stations)
• Operator: Mumbai Metro One Private Ltd. [JV of Reliance Infra (69%), MMRDA (26%) & Veolia Transport (5%)]
• Stations: Versova, D.N. Nagar, Azad Nagar, Andheri, Western Express Highway (WEH), Chakala, Airport Road, Marol Naka, Saki Naka, Asalpha, Jagruti Nagar, Ghatkopar
• Depot: Four Bungalows (DN Nagar)
Line-2A – Yellow Line: Dahisar (East) – Dahanukarwadi (9.5 km, 9 stations)
• Owner: Mumbai Metropolitan Region Development Authority (MMRDA)
• Operator: Maha Mumbai Metro Operations Corporation (MMMOCL)
• Depot: Malvani in Charkop (shared with Red Line)
• In-depth line information can be viewed here
Line-7 – Red Line: Dahisar (East) – Aarey (9.75 km, 10 stations)
• Owner: Mumbai Metropolitan Region Development Authority (MMRDA)
• Operator: Maha Mumbai Metro Operations Corporation (MMMOCL)
• Depot: Malvani in Charkop (shared with Yellow Line) & Dahisar East
• Note: In the future, this line will be extended to Mira-Bhayander in the north (Line-9 with 8 stations) and to CSI Airport’s Terminal-2 (Line-7A with 2 stations)
• In-depth line information can be viewed here
Mumbai Metro – Under Construction Lines
Line-2A – Yellow Line: Dahanukarwadi – D.N. Nagar (9 km, 8 stations)
• Owner: Mumbai Metropolitan Region Development Authority (MMRDA)
• Operator: Maha Mumbai Metro Operations Corporation (MMMOCL)
• Depot: Malvani in Charkop (shared with Red Line)
• In-depth line information can be viewed here
Line-2B – Yellow Line: D.N. Nagar – Bandra – Mandale (23.643 km, 22 stations)
• Owner: Mumbai Metropolitan Region Development Authority (MMRDA)
• Operator: Maha Mumbai Metro Operations Corporation (MMMOCL)
• Depot: Mandale
• In-depth line information can be viewed here
Line-3 – Aqua Line: Cuffe Parade – BKC – SEEPZ – Aarey Colony (33.5 km, 27 stations)
• Owner & Operator: Mumbai Metro Rail Corporation Ltd [50-50 JV of GOI & GoMH]
• Depot: Aarey Colony
• In-depth line information can be viewed here
Line-4 – Green Line: Bhakti Park (Wadala) – Ghatkopar – Thane – Kasarvadavali (32.32 km, 32 stations)
• Owner: Mumbai Metropolitan Region Development Authority (MMRDA)
• Operator: Maha Mumbai Metro Operations Corporation (MMMOCL)
• Depot: Vikhroli & Mogharpada
• Note: On the north side, the line is currently being extended by 2.88 km to Gaimukh (Line-4A with 2 stations) and is approved to be extended by 9.2 km onward to Mira Road (Line-10 with 4 stations). On the south-side, the line in the future will be extended to the CST Station (Line-11 with 10 stations) in South Bombay, and possibly onward to Apollo Bunder in the future.
• In-depth line information can be viewed here
Line-5 – Orange Line: Thane – Bhiwandi – Kalyan (23.50 km, 17 stations)
• Owner: Mumbai Metropolitan Region Development Authority (MMRDA)
• Operator: Maha Mumbai Metro Operations Corporation (MMMOCL)
• Depot: Kon Village (Kalyan)
• Note: 12.811 km Thane – Bhiwandi is under construction. Bhiwandi – Kalyan is on-hold (route modification in progress). In the future, this line will be extended from Kalyan to Taloja as part of Line-12
• In-depth line information can be viewed here
Line-6 – Pink Line: Lokhandwala – JVLR – SEEPZ – Kanjurmarg (14.47 km, 13 stations)
• Owner: Mumbai Metropolitan Region Development Authority (MMRDA)
• Operator: Maha Mumbai Metro Operations Corporation (MMMOCL)
• Depot: Kanjur Village (Kanjurmarg) along EEH
• In-depth line information can be viewed here
Line-7 – Red Line: Dahisar (East) – Andheri (East) (6.75 km, 4stations)
• Owner: Mumbai Metropolitan Region Development Authority (MMRDA)
• Operator: Maha Mumbai Metro Operations Corporation (MMMOCL)
• Depot: Malvani in Charkop (shared with Yellow Line) & Dahisar East
• Note: In the future, this line will be extended to Mira-Bhayander in the north (Line-9 with 8 stations) and to CSI Airport’s Terminal-2 (Line-7A with 2 stations)
• In-depth line information can be viewed here
Mumbai Metro – Proposed Lines
Line-8 – Gold Line: Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj International Airport (CSIA) – Navi Mumbai International Airport (NMIA) (35 km, 7 stations)
• Owner: Mumbai Metropolitan Region Development Authority (MMRDA)
• Operator: Maha Mumbai Metro Operations Corporation (MMMOCL)
• Note: This will be an express line connecting the region’s existing airport with the new airport.
Line-12 – Orange Line: Kalyan – Taloja (20.7 km, 17 stations)
• Owner: Mumbai Metropolitan Region Development Authority
• Operator: Maha Mumbai Metro Operations Corporation (MMMOCL)
• Note: This is a southern extension of Line-5
Line-13 – Purple Line: Shivaji Chowk (Mira Road) – Virar (23 km, 20 stations)
• Owner: Mumbai Metropolitan Region Development Authority (MMRDA)
• Operator: Maha Mumbai Metro Operations Corporation (MMMOCL)
Line-14 – Magenta Line: Vikhroli – Kanjurmarg – Badlapur (45 km, 40 stations)
• Owner: Mumbai Metropolitan Region Development Authority (MMRDA)
• Note: This line is proposed to be built on the public-private partnership (PPP) model. Italian firm MM SpA (owned by Municipality of Milan) was appointed as the preparer for its Detailed Project Report (DPR) in October 2019.
Mumbai Monorail – Operational Lines
• Line-1: Chembur – Jacob Circle (19.54 km, 17 stations)
The embedded maps below show the exact location of all stations and can be zoomed into!
A planned bullet train between Mumbai and the industrial hub of Ahmedabad, which would be the first high-speed rail line anywhere in India, is back on track after slow progress in recent years. Eknath Shinde, who heads the regional government in Maharashtra, greenlit the project and granted all clearances for the corridor in his state.
That has helped add an additional INR60m (US$740,600) to an existing INR180m (US$2.2 million) commitment from the Japan International Cooperation Agency, with the central government inviting bids for the design and construction of a dedicated underground station for the new train in Mumbai. Both moves will help to deliver the project by 2027. It’s a positive development in a country that’s crying out for faster intercity services.
