Southern Railway has proposed to extend the battery-operated car service on chargeable basis to more railway stations falling within the limits of Tiruchi Railway Division.
The plan is to engage interested agencies to provide the service at the chosen railway stations for a period of five years to facilitate transportation of the physically challenged and senior citizens coming to the station and alighting from the train.
The railway administration has identified 17 stations falling within the jurisdiction of Tiruchi Division where it has planned to introduce the new facility.
They include the railway junctions at Villupuram, Thanjavur, Kumbakonam, Mayiladuthurai, Tiruvarur, Velankanni, Vellore, Vriddhachalam, Ariyalur, Puducherry and Nagore, sources said.
A senior railway official here said the administration had invited expression of interest from agencies or organisations interested in providing the service on chargeable basis for five years.
The applicants were asked to mention the charges they intended to levy per passenger, details of the battery car in their possession and their experience in operation of battery cars, besides other details relating to their business.
The battery-operated car facility, which was launched in Tiruchi Junction and initially provided free of cost for some time through sponsor, was made into a paid service thereafter as per the Railway Board’s new policy.
The senior official said there was good response for the service on chargeable basis at Tiruchi. A battery-operated car was being run from the approach road of Tiruchi Junction up to the station’s circulating area free of cost to help all travellers carrying their personal belongings.
