SR rejects plea to halt express trains at Tiruvallur

Officials of Chennai Railway Division have declined public request in Last Week’s Zonal Railway Users Consultative Committee (ZRUCC) on the premise that provision of additional storage at short intervals for these long-distance trains would increase the overall running time and result in some trains losing superfast character.

However, the official reasoning has not deterred commuters from persisting with their demand. Regular rail users argue that Tiruvallur, a district headquarters which generates the same revenue (Rs 15 crore) as Chengalpet, was being denied stoppage, while the same has been extended to Chengalpet. “Only 10 of the 50 express trains passing through Tiruvallur stop there. We only request the division to stop an additional five trains there,” said DRUCC member K Baskar.

For instance, several commuters rely on Kovai bound express train starting from Chennai Central at 6.10am to reach Katpadi and beyond. To board the express train at Arakkonam, which is the nearest stoppage 35 minutes away from Tiruvallur, commuters must take an EMU from Tiruvallur at 5.35am, for which we must start from our home at least around 5am. At Arakkonam, commuters must wait for around an hour to board the Coimbatore bound express trains which stops in all but Tiruvallur district, Baskar added. Ironically, the same Tiruvallur transformed into a terminal in 2015 when Chennai Central was closed during the December floods. Several trains bound for Coimbatore and beyond started from there. It has been reliably learnt that around 300 express tickets were sold even without proper announcements on December 6, 2015. Providing stoppage at Tiruvallur would not only reduce the journey time of commuters but also reduce congestion at Chennai Central and Arakkonam junctions.

A few weeks ago, at least three MPs in Chennai have proposed stoppage for additional express trains at Tiruvallur during a recent meeting with the general manager and divisional railway manager at the zonal headquarters. Ironically, officials have ruled out the feasibility of stopping these express trains during a recent ZRUCC meeting by arguing that provision of additional stoppage at short intervals “would be resented by existing long-distance passengers.”