Overview
- Railway Minister Ashwini Vaishnaw announced a phased commissioning, beginning with the Surat–Bilimora and Vapi–Surat stretches before extending toward Ahmedabad and Mumbai.
- The final breakthrough of Mountain Tunnel-5 in Palghar—about 1,480 metres between Virar and Boisar—was achieved after 18 months of drill-and-blast excavation.
- The line is designed for 320 km/h running and an end-to-end journey time of roughly 2 hours 17 minutes, with 12 stations from Mumbai BKC to Sabarmati.
- Civil works are significantly advanced, with 326 km of viaduct completed and 17 of 25 river bridges built, according to NHSRCL.
- The corridor comprises seven mountain tunnels and a 21-km undersea segment; a 5-km Thane–BKC tunnel was finished in September 2025, and three depots are planned due to earlier approval delays in Maharashtra.