The Mumbai-Ahmedabad HSR Corridor has reached about 80 per cent physical progress in Maharashtra and Gujarat, while tunnel boring has begun from Vikhroli toward Bandra Kurla Complex (BKC) Bullet Train station.

Mumbai-Ahmedabad Bullet Train: India’s 508-km leap
Mumbai-Ahmedabad Bullet Train: India’s 508-km leap

TBM tunnelling starts from Vikhroli

The machine launched from Vikhroli⁠ will excavate a 6 km single-tube tunnel designed for both the up and down bullet train tracks. The Mixshield TBM has a cutterhead diameter of 13.6 metres, weighs 3,100 tonnes, and is 96 metres long.

A 56 metre-deep launch shaft has also been constructed at Vikhroli in Mumbai to enable the start of TBM operations.

The underground tunnel section of the corridor extends for 21 km, with 16 km between Sawli (Ghansoli) and BKC to be built using tunnel boring machines. The remaining 5 km has already been completed through the New Austrian Tunnelling Method.

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Mumbai-Ahmedabad HSR Corridor timeline and investment

Under phase I, operations on the Surat-Billimora section will commence by 2027⁠. Services will then be extended in stages to Vapi, Ahmedabad, and finally Mumbai.

The Mumbai-Ahmedabad HSR Corridor covers 508.17 km across Maharashtra and Gujarat and involves an investment of Rs 1,080 billion. The project is being implemented by National High-Speed Rail Corporation Limited⁠, a special purpose vehicle incorporated by the Ministry of Railways and the state governments of Maharashtra and Gujarat. Their equity participation is structured at 50:25:25.

Official TBM graphic for the Mumbai-Ahmedabad Bullet Train Project
Official TBM graphic for the Mumbai-Ahmedabad Bullet Train Project. Photo: Press Information Bureau / Ministry of Railways

The corridor is the first corridor to be explored for the railway’s bullet train project. The project also includes a 21 km sub-sea tunnel section between Mumbai and Thane.

Official materials describe the wider corridor as a 12-station high-speed rail line with a design speed of 350 km/h and an operational speed of 320 km/h. The project is being developed with Japanese Shinkansen technology, and NHSRCL’s project overview says about 81% of the total project cost will be funded by the Government of Japan through JICA.

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