The passenger amenities at Vijayawada railway station are by and large good but the travelling public is often troubled by the malfunctioning of lifts that connect the platforms. The station has five lifts linking up the 10 platforms, and at any point of time one of them will be in a state of disrepair. It could be due to erratic power supply or technical snags rendering them defunct albeit temporarily.
Whatever be the cause, passengers, particularly the elderly and their attendants, are facing a serious problem in moving from one platform to another especially during the rush hours. Besides, passengers rarely find operators who help them in using the lifts.
Vijayawada station also has five escalators and three of them were installed late last year. All of them are in working condition but many aged people are not using the moving staircases due to fear. For such people lifts are an easy way to move, hence the need to ensure proper upkeep of lifts and availability of operators at least during the busy hours.
Of late, passengers are facing a problem due to non-functioning of the lift situated near the Clock Tower at main entrance of the railway station. A defective component in the machine is cited as the reason for it remaining useless for the last few days. It is expected to be repaired in a couple of days for which the Railway officials concerned took necessary steps.
