Mumbai's Metro Line 6 targets a late-2026 start, running trains before its depot is ready

The Mumbai Metropolitan Region Development Authority is moving to open Metro Line 6, the 15.3-km Pink Line linking Swami Samarth Nagar in Andheri West to Vikhroli, in the second half of 2026 — even though the car depot planned at Kanjurmarg is far from ready. About 15 hectares of salt-pan land earmarked for the depot still await final clearance, and officials have concluded that waiting could delay the line by years.

In place of a full depot, MMRDA is building an elevated stabling deck fitted with pit lines alongside the Eastern Express Highway, supplemented by single pit lines near stations, to service and park trains. The east–west corridor threads through the JVLR–Powai belt, connecting the western and eastern suburbs without a detour through the island city.

For the central-suburb office and campus cluster around Powai, Vikhroli and JVLR, a working metro would ease reliance on chronically congested road links and improve access to both airports and the wider network. Corridors of this kind have historically firmed up demand and pricing once services begin, though the effect tends to follow operations rather than announcements.

The timeline still hinges on safety inspections and trial runs, and the interim maintenance arrangement carries its own limits until the Kanjurmarg question is resolved. For now, the decision signals MMRDA's preference to start carrying passengers rather than hold the line hostage to a land dispute.