Monorail to Halt if ‘Overloaded’; MMRDA Takes Key Decision

After an incident where the monorail was overcrowded beyond its passenger capacity, the Mumbai Metropolitan Region Development Authority (MMRDA) has made an important decision regarding safety. Now, if a monorail train has more than 104 tons of passengers, it will not be allowed to proceed on the route. Additionally, if the train is overloaded, passengers will be safely disembarked before the train is sent forward.

The monorail trains are designed for a capacity of up to 104 tons, but as these trains have been running for the past 10 years, their efficiency has somewhat decreased. Therefore, to avoid the risk of accidents in the future, MMRDA has decided to implement short-term and long-term measures.

In the incident that occurred on Tuesday, it was found that one train had 582 passengers and another had 566 passengers, despite the capacity limit being 562. Due to the excess load, the train tilted at a turn, causing a disconnection between the current collector and the power rail. As a result, the train stopped suddenly and could not be moved forward as the brakes did not release. Passengers were rescued with the help of the fire brigade. In this context, a decision has been made to deploy a security guard in each train along with a technical staff member with a mono pilot.

Each monorail has 8 emergency windows. Orders have been given to inspect them and affix clear directional labels. Additionally, information on what passengers should do in an emergency will be clearly displayed on boards.