Railway traffic had to be suspended on the Diva-Dativali line late on Wednesday after a red Mustang skidded off a rail overbridge between Nilje and Dativali stations. There were no injuries or fatalities due to the crash, but rail traffic was affected for a little over an hour.
Shivaji Sutar, chief public relations officer, Central Railway (CR), said the line was shut at 11.15 p.m. on Wednesday, and traffic resumed at 12.35 a.m. on Thursday. Railway authorities were informed about the accident by Padmakar Hira Shelar, a trackman from the Mumbai division of CR.
“He was going for patrolling on his motorcycle when he noticed the accident while passing over the rail overbridge. He immediately reported the matter and trains were stopped. He will be rewarded for averting mishap,” Mr. Sutar said.
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“I was on my way to work when I noticed there were several vehicles parked on the bridge and a crowd underneath it. I parked my bike on the bridge to see what was the cause behind the crowd,” Mr. Shelar said. He said the car was in the middle of both tracks but people were not removing it out of fear of an oncoming train.
“I called my immediate supervisor to tell him what had happened and they cut the power to the OHE. After that, the crowd pushed the car to the side of the tracks,” he said. Mr. Shelar has been a trackman for the Railways since 2008 and is on night duty on the section between Nilje and Dativali.
Sources said the car belonged to the sole Maharashtra Navnirman Sena (MNS) MLA Raju Patil. Mr. Patil is the general secretary of the MNS and won the Assembly election from Kalyan (Rural). Senior police inspector D.K. Choure, Manpada police station, said the driver did not have any major injuries. “The car lost its balance and fell off the bridge. It was not a case of rash driving. There was no damage to property or person,” he said.
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Mr. Choure said there is a lot of traffic on the road and bridge through the night. However, railway officials said a complaint has been registered under Section 154 of the Railways Act for endangering the safety of persons travelling by train.