Railways are planning to replace non-air-conditioned sleeper coaches of busy trains with reserved chair cars to enhance passenger carrying capacity during overnight journeys up to 10 hours.
Union Railway Minister Suresh Prabhu has also proposed double-decker trains for short-distance travel. The proposals are part of the reforms being planned by Mr. Prabhu.
A reserved non-air-conditioned chair car can carry 108 passengers as against 80 seats in the newly introduced non-air-conditioned sleeper coach. The existing sleeper coaches can carry only 72 passengers. Besides carrying more commuters, Railways will be able to bring down the ticket rates with the switch to chair car coaches.
This will be beneficial for Kerala as more commuters can be accommodated on overnight intercity trains such as Palakkad Town-bound Amrita, Mangaluru-bound Ernad, Nilambur-bound Rajyarani and Mangaluru-bound Malabar Expresses.
The proposal has come in for criticism from passengers’ associations and commuters although Railways have not fully revealed the plan. “It will be foolish if sleeper class coaches are replaced. Senior citizens and the sick prefer trains to buses and flights. The move will affect them,” says P. Krishnakumar, general secretary, Thrissur Railway Passengers Association.
Instead of phasing out all sleeper coaches, a percentage of them should be converted, he said.
This could be attempted even in long-distance trains such as the Guruvayur-Chennai-Egmore express. A top Railway official told The Hindu that the move was aimed at enhancing the carrying capacity. The Railway Board has asked zonal railways to look into the feasibility of the proposal before taking a formal decision.
“It is true that more commuters can be carried. But, it is to seen how the commuters will respond in a State like Kerala where the people prefer to sleep even for short overnight travel on trains,” the official added.
