Girder tilt halts services on Thane-Vashi-Panvel route, commuters face disruption

THANE: Services on the Thane and Vashi-Panvel Trans-Harbour route of the Central Railway resumed nearly five hours after being suspended at 7:10 am, following the tilting of a girder launched by the MMRDA in the early hours of Friday, officials said. "The MMRDA took a mega block from 1 am to 4 am on Friday early morning hours on the Trans-Harbour line to launch girders between Thane and Airoli. It was noticed that the girders launched were tilted. Traffic was suspended from 7:10 am and resumed only around 12 pm when the first services started from Thane and Vashi direction," railway officials informed.Meanwhile, a huge crowd was witnessed at Thane and other railway stations on the Thane-Vashi-Panvel route since early morning during peak hours. The railways deployed teams to bar passengers from accessing the platform to avoid crowding. Many passengers complained they were not aware of the situation, as announcements made at the station remained vague, leaving commuters with no idea about when services would resume.Others opted to take the road route to reach their destinations. The roads connecting Thane and Navi Mumbai also witnessed traffic snarls, with buses running packed to capacity. Several auto drivers were seen making a quick buck by overcharging stranded passengers desperate to reach their workplaces.