CHENNAI: The EMU commuters suffer as the services between Beach-Tambaram-Chengalpattu are cancelled until Sunday and only minimal trains are operated.

The EMU commuters have been having a hard time due to the cancellations of the services for the past few weeks due to the Tambaram Railway yard maintenance work.

However, earlier it was announced that the work would be completed by August 14 but now still the work has not been completed and the cancellation of trains has been extended till August 18.

On August 15 most of the EMUs were cancelled between Chengalpattu-Beach. It was earlier announced that 54 train services would be operated in the stretch but on Thursday only 17 services were operated.

Even those EMUs were not direct trains to Chengalpattu and Beach so the people had to wait an extra hour in Tambaram to board another EMU to Chengalpattu or Beach.

Though it was a holiday the footfall in most railway stations like Chengalpattu, Maraimalai Nagar, Guduvanchery, Urapakkam, Tambaram and Perungalathur was high like the usual working day. The people had to wait an hour to board the train and most of them were forced to travel on footboard.

"We still don't know how many days we need to suffer like this due to the cancellation of trains. If the train services are cancelled the government should have made alternate arrangements for the public," said Naveen, a commuter from Perungalathur.

The commuters said the special buses also could not be spotted anywhere and all the buses were also full.

"Usually, the maintenance works would be carried out from only during the midnight till early morning. Only this year we are put to suffer like this," said another commuter.