Day After 2 Mumbai Monorail Trains Broke Down, Infra Body's Safety Measures

A day after nearly 800 passengers were stranded on two stalled monorail rakes amid heavy rain in Mumbai, the Mumbai Metropolitan Region Development Authority (MMRDA) and its operating arm, Maha Mumbai Metro Operation Corp Ltd (MMMOCL), on Wednesday announced a detailed set of safety measures to prevent such incidents in the future. 

The MMRDA, which operates the monorail, said one of the trains "exceeded its original design capacity of 104 tons" due to overcrowding, which led to the disruption of the power supply.

"Clear instructions have been issued to MMMOCL to strengthen safety systems and operational vigilance," a statement by the metropolitan development authority read, outlining short-term and long-term measures to ensure passenger safety. 

Immediate Measures

• Each coach has a capacity of 18 sitting passengers and 124 standing passengers. To prevent overcrowding, station staff will now enforce a passenger limit, and if a train is too full, it will stop, and passengers will be asked to safely get off before it continues.
• Each train will have a security personnel to monitor crowding, along with a trained technician travelling with the monorail pilot to fix any technical issues on the spot.
• Every Monorail has eight ventilation windows -- two in each of the four coaches - which are being inspected and labelled so that passengers know what to do in an emergency, the statement said.
• Clear signs have been installed inside the trains to guide passengers on safety steps and how to use emergency exits. Additionally, the Director of Maintenance has been tasked with carrying out inspections across the fleet to ensure all safety rules are being followed, it said. 

The statement further said that MMRDA has procured 10 new monorail rakes, out of which seven have arrived and are being tested. "Once cleared, they will be added to passenger service, expanding capacity, reducing strain on the ageing fleet, and improving overall reliability," an official said. 

"MMRDA remains deeply committed to passenger safety and comfort. We will continue to strengthen our systems so that every Mumbaikar can travel with complete confidence," the statement read. 

Two monorail trains broke down in Mumbai yesterday evening, stranding hundreds of passengers. In the first incident, a monorail train - with 582 passengers - got stuck between Mysore Colony and Bhakti Park in central Mumbai's Chembur at 6.38 pm after a power supply issue due to "overcrowding", said MMRDA. 

Nearly an hour later, another monorail train - with 200 passengers - came to an abrupt halt between Acharya Atre and Wadala Mono Rail Station at 7.33 pm. The passengers were evacuated after the train was towed back to the nearby Wadala station.

Mumbai is the only city to operate a Monorail System that runs at an average speed of 65 km per hour.

Ever since the Mumbai monorail started running, there have been several incidents. In August 2024, a monorail train suddenly got stuck mid-journey. Then, a few months ago, a monorail train with several school children came to a halt all of a sudden due to a technical problem.

This came as the city had been hit by rain for the last two days, disrupting normal life.