Five Firms Submit Design Proposals for Rs 12,200 Crore Thane Integral Ring Metro Project

Within weeks of the union cabinet approving the Rs 12,200 crore Thane Integral Ring Metro project, the Maharashtra Metro Rail Corporation Limited (Maha Metro) has received design proposals from five consultants for key aspects of the project.

The proposed metro line is 29 km long, with the initial design focus on an 8 km section in Thane West.

Five companies have submitted design proposals for the first phase of the circular metro line, which will have six stations over 8 km. The companies include RITES Limited, Navi Mumbai-based STUP Consultants, New Delhi-based LKT Engineering Consultants, and two French companies (through their Indian counterparts, Enia Design and Systra MVA Consulting).

The project, which has been in the planning stage for seven years, was initially handled by the Thane Municipal Corporation (TMC) but was later transferred to Maha Metro for implementation. “The selected company is responsible for the design of the station and the entire 29 km route will be divided into 3 to 4 sections to increase the capacity of the construction,” said the Managing Director of Maha Metro Shravan Hardikar.

The six stations in the first design phase are Waterfront (Hiranandani Estate), Waghbil, Vijay Nagari, Dongripada, Manpada, and Dr. Kashinath Ghanekar Natyagruha.

The route passes through the most important places of Tarn, including Wagarh Estate, Manpada, Wagbir, Balkum, Labodie, and Tarn railway stations. These fields have developed significantly over the past decade and are still changing.

Hardikar said geotechnical studies should be started and design proposals for the remaining 14 stations will be submitted soon. The project is funded by the governments of India and Maharashtra, with additional funding provided by various development banks and bilateral finance agencies.

The Thane Circle Metro is expected to be operational by 2029. Gaimukh is connected to Wadala in India.

The study predicts it will reach 647,000 by 2029, increase to 761,000 by 2035 and 872,000 by 2045.