Mumbai Metro Yellow Line on track: First phase to open by Dec, second stretch next summer

Mumbai Metro

Work on Mumbai’s Metro Line 2, also called the Yellow Line, is moving forward steadily, according to officials from the Mumbai Metropolitan Region Development Authority (MMRDA). The corridor aims to connect the city’s eastern and western suburbs and is being built in two parts, Line 2A and Line 2B.

Line 2A, linking Dahisar to DN Nagar in Andheri West, is already operational. Line 2B, stretching from DN Nagar to Mandale in Mankhurd, is currently under construction and will be opened in stages. Trial runs are underway on the first section, a 5.3-km stretch between Mandale and Diamond Garden in Chembur, which is expected to open for the public by December 2025.

Yellow Line phase-wise opening plan

According to the MMRDA officials, the plan to open the second phase of Line 2B, from DN Nagar to Saraswat Nagar in Khar, is by next summer. Once this section is ready, it will connect with the already operational Line 2A at DN Nagar, creating a smooth travel corridor between Dahisar and Khar. The only remaining part would be the middle stretch between Saraswat Nagar and Diamond Garden.

When fully completed, the 23.6-km-long Line 2B corridor will include 20 stations and become Mumbai’s second major east–west metro link after Metro 1 (Versova–Andheri–Ghatkopar). Officials said that work in the western suburbs is progressing well and that operating the corridor in stages will help ease congestion sooner.

We are aiming to make phase 2 operational till Saraswat Nagar, which would connect to line 2A at DN Nagar by summer next year. The middle portion of this metro line will take more time, so we can certainly operate this corridor in phases,” Hindustan Times quoted an MMRDA official as saying.

Stations and trial runs

The stations likely to open in phase 2 include ESIC Nagar, Prem Nagar, Indira Nagar, Nanavati Hospital, Khira Nagar, and Saraswat Nagar. These stations will serve some of the city’s most crowded areas along Link Road and SV Road. The central stretch that remains incomplete will pass through Bandra (West), Bandra-Kurla Complex (BKC), Kurla, and Chembur, but officials say there is no confirmed completion date yet.

Though trial runs are ongoing on the first section, the Commissioner of Metro Rail Safety (CMRS) has already granted safety clearance. “We have received the required permissions, but we are ensuring the system is fully reliable before opening it to passengers,” the MMRDA official said.

The total estimated cost of Metro Line 2B is around Rs 10,986 crore. The first section, from Mandale to Diamond Garden, was originally meant to open earlier this month along with Metro 3 (Aqua Line), but construction delays pushed it back.

Why is there a delay?

According to the initial schedule, the entire Yellow Line was supposed to be completed by October 2022. However, progress slowed due to poor contractor performance, the shifting of power lines, and administrative delays. One crucial contract, covering the stretch from BKC–MTNL to Diamond Garden, was awarded only in March 2022, almost two years late.

Meanwhile, MMRDA has also adjusted train schedules on Metro Line 7 (Red Line) and Metro 2A between October 12 and 18 to allow integration work with the upcoming Metro 9, which will extend the Red Line from Dahisar East to Kashi Gaon.