Thane Metro

The line was initially proposed by the Thane Municipal Corporation. It proposed a 29 km line running through core areas of Thane. Initially the TMC proposed the line as a heavy rail project. The initial draft was approved by the TMC in December 2018 after which it was submitted to the state government the next month. The state government approved the project on March 6.^[4] However, following financial difficulties the line was put on hold. Later in December 2020, the TMC revised the line again with several modifications. Rather than a heavy rail system, the line was converted to a light rail to reduce costs, the coach count was reduced from 6 coaches per train set to 3 coaches.^[5] This revised proposal received criticism from the public stating that a Light Rail Project would not be sufficient for a city like Thane. In 2023, however, TMC once again scrapped its proposal of a light rail system and revised the line to a Heavy rail again. The final draft saw a proposed interchange facility with the under construction Line 4 and Line 5 of Mumbai Metro.^[6] It also proposed the line to go underground near the Thane Railway Station and CIDCO Bus Terminal. The line was finally approved by the central government on 14 August 2024 and by the state government on 30 September 2024 with an estimated cost of ₹12,200 crore (US$1.4 billion).^[7][8] The project was initially supposed to be executed by the Thane Municipal Corporation. However, this was later modified when Maha Metro was assigned as the agency responsible for the implementation of the line.^[9] Finally the foundation for the line was laid by Prime Minister Narendra Modi on 5 October 2024.^{[10][11][12][13]}

The project is estimated to cost ₹12,200.10 crore (US$1.4 billion) with both the central and state governments expected to contribute with equal equity.^[9][14]

Maha Metro has started the tendering process for the line following the approval from the Central and State government.^[15]