Mumbai to get its first AC local on January 1

Mumbai’s commuters will get air-conditioned local trains as a new year gift from the railways. Railway minister Piyush Goyal said on Wednesday that the first AC rake will be introduced on Western Railway on January 1. The plan to introduce AC locals in Mumbai has been on the cards for a decade.

Initially, WR will run one AC rake with seven services daily. A single ticket is likely to cost the same as a first class ticket, but season passes are expected to be priced around 1.5 times more than their first class equivalents.

The railways has procured nine more EMU (electrical multiple unit) AC rakes for Mumbai so that services can be introduced on Central Railway (CR) as well.