The number of persons who are killed or injured either due to trespassing onto railway tracks or by falling off a moving train has been steadily increasing in the last three years.
Despite several safety awareness campaigns by the Southern Railway and non-governmental organisations, as many as 759 persons lost their lives last year, compared to 643 in 2009 and 549 in 2008, who were fatally knocked down by suburban and long-distance trains.
Similarly, the number of persons who were injured has also gone up from 224 in 2009 to 276 last year.
Such accidents mostly occur in the stretches between Egmore and Guindy and from Avadi to Tiruvallur, according to the Southern Railway. On an average, 63 persons have died in train accidents every month last year.
Besides negligence of commuters and their urgency to board trains during rush hour, the lack of proper facilities and enforcement in some of the railway stations are also cited as reasons for the accidents.
Commuters' woes
K. Chengalvarayan, a commuter at Nungambakkam, said many hesitate to take the foot overbridges as the climb is steep. Though some portions between Nungambakkam and Chetpet have been protected by a compound wall, many commuters, particularly college students, jump over the wall and cross the track.
Several commuters in Park Town station tend to cross the track instead of taking the foot overbridge to reach another platform in a rush to board suburban trains. Though Railway Protection Force personnel monitor and warn people, the situation is often uncontrollable, he said.
According to Government Railway Police personnel, even while approaching railway stations, suburban trains run at a considerable speed. This leads to fatality if a person carelessly crosses the track.
Commuters in the western suburbs urge officials to construct road underbridges in stations such as Avadi and Ambattur as the vehicle population has increased in their localities. The absence of FOBs in some stations such as Nemilicherry leaves commuters with little choice but to cross the tracks.
T. Ravikumar, president of All India Rail and Bus Passengers Welfare Association, said that passengers, especially women, avoid using FOBs as several of them lack adequate illumination and maintenance. “We have been conducting awareness campaigns among people about hazards of using mobile phones while walking on the level-crossing and trespassing.” He emphasised the need to fence off the areas along the tracks to prevent trespassing.
Southern suburbs
The jurisdiction of Government Railway Police, Tambaram, stretches from St. Thomas Mount to as far as Singaperumal Koil, covering nearly 40 km. In the past two years, a total of 333 people were killed in the southern suburbs.
Some of the accident-prone locations are Tirusulam, Chromepet, Tambaram, Irumbuliyur, Guduvanchery and Potheri.
Highlighting the need for officials to ensure passenger safety, R. Balaji, a Central government employee travelling by train for over two decades, said: “Commuters must wait for their turn to get inside the compartment after arriving at the platform well ahead of time. This is the only way to prevent loss of lives.”
Under the gauge conversion project of 1998-1999, the State and Central governments came together to replace level-crossings with subways and road overbridges along the Chennai Beach – Tambaram section that has been extended to Chengalpattu now.
Though most level-crossings have been closed, the rate of accidents has only increased, said a member of the Traffic and Transportation Forum, formed by a group of commuters and activists in Adambakkam. A senior official of the RPF said several persons were caught while crossing the track near station, including Tambaram and Park Town daily. A fine between Rs.200 and Rs.500 is levied. Preventing commuters from taking a short cut and encouraging them to take the FOB was often met with contempt from passengers, the officer said.
Southern Railway initiatives
On an average, two persons are knocked down fatally by trains in the Gummidipoondi, Arakkonam and Chengalpattu sections every day, said S.Anantharaman, Divisional Railway Manager, Chennai Division, Southern Railway.
However, this year, the fatal accidents have reduced to 65 in the past two months. The Southern Railway has stepped up measures to ensure safety of the commuters and also encourage them to use FOBs. About 2,000 cases are registered every month against trespassing, he said.
The Safety Division of Southern Railway, RPF and GRP, with help from activists and non-governmental organisations, conduct safety awareness programmes periodically and distribute pamphlets. Besides increasing the public announcements in the busy railway stations about safe travel, more campaigns would be conducted, he added. The Southern Railway would also put up more posters on the impact of trespassing in the stations.
