Typical of Mumbai - a metro system which isn't that obviously useful...

One of the things about being a Mumbaikar, is that you take a dim view of Delhi. In Mumbai and Bengaluru, money is earned and invested, whereas in Delhi an inept government wastes it for you. Mumbai is cultured, stylish, Delhi bureaucratic and backward.

And so, obviously, Mumbai is leading the way in terms of modern transport methods, right? Errr... wrong, actually. Whilst Delhi has five metro lines and an Airport Express route, Mumbai has one line, linking Ghatkopar, in the northern suburbs on the Central Railway, with Andheri, also in the distant suburbs on the Western Railway, before ending at Versova - still a long way from the central city.

It did seem worth an explore, however, so I caught a bus to Kurla and a commuter train to Ghatkopar, where I headed for the rather swish looking new station. And yes, the whole thing is rather impressive - clean, efficient (somewhat unlike most of the city outside), and with a maximum fare of 40 rupees, competitive with the local bus service.

But, whilst it passes near the incredible new International Airport, it doesn't serve it yet - there is talk of a spur that will do so one day - making it pretty useless for tourists whilst putting the cost of housing up in the areas served by it - where have I heard that before?

Something else that I have learnt on this trip is that commuter trains are much cheaper than local buses. For example, Santa Cruz to Hutatma Chowk is 30 rupees by bus, but only ten by train. There is probably a very good reason for this and, perhaps, someone will explain it to me...