Targhar railway station, Navi Mumbai: As the Navi Mumbai International Airport (NMIA)gets ready for operations from December 25, the commute to the new facility is set to get smoother. How? Two new stations
and five train services will now help passengers reach the NMIA easily.
TARGHAR, GAVAN & URAN LINE: 2 STATIONS, 5 SERVICES
The suburban railway station at Targhar, located near the upcoming Navi Mumbai International Airport, has opened for local train services on the Port Line of Belapur-Nerul-Uran from Monday (December 15).
The Gavan station also became operation, in additional to five new services on the Uran line.
HOW FAR ARE TARGHAR AND GAVAN FROM NMIA?
Targhar station is the nearest suburban railway station to the airport.
Gavan Station, on the other hand, will improve access for local residents and enhance suburban rail coverage in the region.
WHAT THE CR SAID
“The Central Railway (CR) has introduced five additional pairs of local trains on the Belapur/Nerul–Uran corridor from tomorrow [Monday]. With this addition, the total number of daily services on the Uran line has increased from 40 to 50, significantly easing commuter movement. Simultaneously, two new suburban railway stations — Targhar and Gavan — have been operationalised, further strengthening last-mile connectivity in the rapidly developing Uran belt,” Chief Public Relations Officer Dr Swapnil Nila was quoted as saying in several media reports.
URAN: THE REVISED TIMETABLE
With the revised timetable, local train services will now operate for longer hours:
Uran: First train at 5.35 am; last train at 10.05 pm
Belapur: 5.45 am to 10.15 pm
Nerul: 6.05 am to 9.30 pm
THE WAYS TO REACH NMIA
The NMIA is located in Navi Mumbai near Ulwe and Panvel. This is how those travelling from Mumbai, Thane, Pune, Raigad, Konkan can reach it through various modes of transport:
Roads or highways:
Mumbai-Trans Harbour Link (MTHL) or Atal Setu: The 22-km sea bridge connects Sewri (Mumbai) to Nhava Sheva (Navi Mumbai). It will bring down the travel time to 20 minutes from bridge end to NMIA. It was opened in 2024, and connects to NMIA via Ulwe Coastal Road.
Sion-Panvel Highway, NH 348A, Amra Marg: These existing highways connect Mumbai, Thane, and suburbs to Navi Mumbai and NMIA.
Eastern Freeway: It brings traffic from South Mumbai to Chembur before joining the Sion-Panvel highway.
Ulwe Coastal Road (UCR): A new six-lane road (5.8 km) with a 1.2-km elevated section. It will link Amra Marg/Belapur to MTHL junction for direct NMIA access. It is under construction and expected to be ready by early 2026.
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Thane-NMIA Elevated Corridor: A 26-km corridor has been proposed. It links Patni Chowk in Thane to Vashi and has 9-km connector from Vashi to NMIA. The double-decker design is meant to ease congestion on the Thane-Belapur Road. The DPR is underway, while the construction is yet to begin. It has been approved and will facilitate passengers from the entire metropolitan region. With this elevated corridor, it will take just a few minutes to travel from Mumbai and Thane to Navi Mumbai. This elevated road will be connected to Ulwe Coastal Road. It will be connected to the Navi Mumbai airport terminals by an elevated road.
Kharghar-Belapur Coastal Road: The road is planned between Kharghar Sector-16 and Belapur Sector-11. It aims to ease Sion-Panvel traffic and improve NMIA access. While CRZ clearance has been received, construction is awaited.
Mumbai Metros
Metro Line 8 (Gold Line): This is the route the corridor will take — CSMIA (Andheri) to Kurla to LTT to Mankhurd to Vashi to Nerul to Belapur to NMIA. The line will begin at CSMIA Terminal 2 in Andheri, travel underground till Chhedanagar in Chembur, and then continue as an elevated line until NMIA.
It is expected to be completed by 2029.
Navi Mumbai Metro lines: CIDCO plans to extend Navi Mumbai MetroLines to connect directly with NMIA. Specific lines and alignments are in planning stages.
Railways
Panvel Railway Station: This station on the harbour line of the CR is close to NMIA. Passengers can use Panvel railway station along with road/metro connections to reach NMIA. Fliers from Pune, Raigad, Nashik and Konkan, too, can arrive here.
Buses and public transport
Airport Express Buses (Planned): MSRTC and others are planning dedicated airport express buses from Pune, Thane, Dadar, Vashi and Panvel. Some services may be electric.
CIDCO and MMRDA are planning mini-buses, e-rickshaws, auto stands, and shuttles from rail/metro nodes to NMIA terminals.
