Matheran Hill Railway

Matheran Hill Railway
Matheran Railway No.740 preserved in the UK at Railworld in Peterborough
Locale	Raigad district, Maharashtra
Terminus	Neral Matheran
Commercial operations
Built by	Abdul Hussein Adamjee Peerbhoy
Original gauge	2 ft (610 mm)
Preserved operations
Operated by	Central Railways
Length	21 km
Preserved gauge	2 ft (610 mm)
Commercial history
Opened	1907
Preservation history
1904	Construction started
2005	Closed due to flood damage
5 March 2007	Re-opened after repair from flood damage
15 April 2007	Centenary celebration

Matheran Hill Railway is a 2 ft (610 mm) narrow gauge heritage railway in Maharashtra, India. The railways comes under the administration of the Central Railways. The railway covers a distance of 21 km (13.05 mi), over large swathes of forest territory connecting Neral to Matheran in the Western Ghats. UNESCO is considering giving world heritage status to matheran light railway.^[1]

History

The Neral-Matheran Light Railway was built between 1901 and 1907 by Abdul Hussein Adamjee Peerbhoy, financed by his father, Sir Adamjee Peerbhoy at a cost of ₹16 lakh (US$24,000).^[2] Sir Adamjee Peerbhoy visited Matheran often and wanted to build a railway to make it easier to get there. Hussain's plans for the Matheran Hill Railway were formulated in 1900 and construction started in 1904. Consulting engineer was Everard Calthrop of Barsi Light Railway fame. The line was open to traffic by 1907. Originally, the tracks were laid with 30 lb/yd (14.9 kg/m) rails but now has 42 lb/yd (20.8 kg/m) rails. Ruling gradient is 1:20 (5%) with tight curves and speeds are limited to 12 km/h (7.5 mph).

The railway was closed by flood damage during 2005 and was not expected to re-open before April 2007.^[3] Contrary to those expectations, the first run on the repaired railway was on 5 March 2007.^[4] The line observed its centenary on 15 April 2007.

Train services were suspended during the monsoon season from June to October^[5] because of the danger of landslides. During the 2012 monsoon season, CR conducted tests of the air brakes, and after receiving approval from the Commission of Railway Safety, ran the train during the monsoon for the first time.^[6] CR plans to shorten the period during which services are suspended by suspending services only from 15 July and restarting them on 1 October.^[7]

In November 2012, CR added a special coach called a saloon to trains operating on the line. The saloons feature cushioned sofas and LCD screens showing images from outside the train. Earlier, these saloons were available only to railway officers.^[8][9]

Route description

Neral-Matheran Railway
Neral Jummapatti[10] Water Pipe[11] Aman Lodge railway station[12] Matheran

Matheran railway station

Neral, the starting point, is about midway between Mumbai and Pune. The 2 ft (610 mm) narrow gauge line runs parallel to the BG line to the west of Hardal Hill and then turns east to ascend towards Matheran. The rail alignment and the roadway meet near Jumappati and meet again, after a brief separation, at Bhekra Khud. Following a small level stretch, there is a sharp ascent just before Mount Barry. A large horseshoe embankment was built to avoid a reversing station here. The line runs for a mile or so northwards around this and then turns around to take the 'One kiss Tunnel' through the embankment. Two more zig-zags through deep cuttings remain before Panorama Point is reached, and then the line bends back to Simpson's Tank and terminates at Matheran.

Neral also has a 5 ft 6 in (1,676 mm) (Indian gauge) station which is on the busy Mumbai-Pune route. It takes approximately 2 hours and 20 minutes to complete the 21 km journey. CR plans to reduce this to 1 hour 30 minutes.

Locomotives

Currently used diesel locomotive

Steam locomotives

Consulting engineer Everard Calthrop designed a 0-6-0T with Klein-Linder locomotives articulated coupled axles to provide a flexible wheelbase, and four were supplied by Orenstein & Koppel. They ran from the railway's opening in 1907 till 1982, when they were replaced by diesel engines. By 1983, all steam locomotives were phased out. A 'B' class loco #794 from the Darjeeling Himalayan Railway was transferred to the Neral-Matheran line in 2001 to test the feasibility of steam excursions.^[1]

Diesel locomotives

Currently Class NDM1 and NDM6 locomotives are in use.

Other Tourism Trains in India

• Palace on Wheels
• Royal Rajasthan on Wheels
• The Golden Chariot
• Deccan Odyssey
• India on Wheels
• The Indian Maharaja

See also

• Darjeeling Himalayan Railway
• Matheran
• Mountain railways of India
• Nilgiri Mountain Railway

References

External links

• Neral Matheran Light Railway - Photographs of 2005 monsoon damage
• Matheran
• International Working Steam
• Neral Matheran toy train’s track record
• Aerial photo of the train

Wikimedia Commons has media related to Matheran Hill Railway.