Railways Minister Ashwini Vaishnaw has said that India’s first bullet train project is “progressing very well,” outlining a phased commissioning plan that begins with the Surat-Bilimora stretch and expands north and south in subsequent stages.
According to the minister, construction for the first section (Surat-Bilimora) is to be ready by December 2026, with an opening target around August 2027.
Vaishnaw also indicated the next build-out would move toward Vapi-Ahmedabad, followed by extensions toward Thane and finally Mumbai as works progress across the corridor.
“Construction for the first section will be ready by December of 2026 itself, with the first section being Surat to Bilimora. The second section, from Vapi to Ahmedabad, will be ready in the first half of 2027, and then up to Thane and then up to Mumbai,” Vaishnaw said, according to a Railway Ministry statement.
“The Union Minister added that progress is absolutely good and that the first section, Surat to Bilimora, should be opened in August 2027,” the statement added.
The project – also known as Mumbai-Ahmedabad High-Speed Rail (MAHSR) corridor – spans 508 km and is designed for operational speeds up to 320 km/h, based on Japan’s Shinkansen technology. Once fully operational, it is expected to cut Mumbai-Ahmedabad travel time to roughly about two hours.
According to the National High Speed Rail Corporation Limited, the implementing agency for the Rs 1.08 lakh crore project, significant progress has been made across civil works, track, electrification and tunnelling.
The total length of the corridor is 508 km, comprising 352 km in Gujarat and Dadra and Nagar Haveli, and 156 km in Maharashtra.
The project includes 12 thematically designed bullet train stations at Sabarmati, Ahmedabad, Anand, Vadodara, Bharuch, Surat, Bilimora and Vapi in Gujarat, and Boisar, Virar, Thane and Mumbai in Maharashtra.
NHSRCL said 332 km of viaduct construction and 415 km of pier work has been completed. Seventeen river bridges have been completed, including 5 prestressed concrete bridges and 12 steel bridges.
More than 4.9 lakh noise barriers have been installed along a 245 km stretch. Track-related work includes completion of 292 track km, equivalent to 146 route km, of reinforced concrete track bed construction.
On electrification, around 4,800 overhead electrification masts have been installed, covering approximately 111 route km of the mainline viaduct.
In Maharashtra, tunnel construction is underway at multiple locations. Of the seven mountain tunnels planned in Palghar district, breakthrough has been achieved for the first tunnel, while excavation work continues on the remaining six. Additionally, 5 km of the 21 km NATM tunnel between BKC and Shilphata has been excavated.
Construction of rolling stock depots at Surat and Ahmedabad is in progress. Superstructure work on all stations in Gujarat is at an advanced stage.
In Maharashtra, work has commenced on all three elevated stations, and base slab casting is in progress at the Mumbai underground station.
