A week after the uproar among commuters over the delay in Mumbai’s suburban train services, Union Railway Minister Suresh Prabhu has proposed a unique solution to ease the peak-hour pressure on the city’s local trains.
Mr. Prabhu has asked Maharashtra Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis to introduce staggered working hours for office-goers to avoid overcrowding of trains.
“The Mumbai train system has been expanded to its ultimate capacity. There is a tremendous stress on resources. To reduce the load during peak hours, I have suggested to the Chief Minister to introduce staggered office timings in Mumbai,” Mr. Prabhu told reporters here on Thursday after a meeting with Mr. Fadnavis.
The two leaders discussed around 17 points relating to the development of Railways and transport in the State.
Mr. Prabhu stressed that it was important to look at demand-centric solutions as well to reduce the imbalance in usage of train services. At the same time, the Minister said the Railways were planning two major rail corridors with six-lane tracks running below — from CST to Panvel and from Churchgate to Virar — which would connect the city with its suburban areas, where the rush is greater.
“Most office-goers travel at the same time, in the mornings and evenings. With a little adjustment to their timings, we can control the peak rush in a big way. This will also be a low-cost solution. The CM has agreed to consider this; we are waiting for a technical sanction,” Mr. Prabhu said.
As Mumbai’s suburban trains ferry roughly 75 lakh commuters daily — roughly a third of the daily national traffic — any sort of disruption tends to bring the country’s financial capital to a standstill and can, as happened last week, even lead to violence and vandalising of public property.
Mr. Prabhu said the timings solution would be applicable to both private and government sector employees.He said a standing committee for integrated transport solution would be created to expedite the railway projects in the State. In the existing system, multiple agencies work on the transport system.
The Minister also said the Railways were working to implement an integrated waste disposal system, and work with municipal bodies to ensure that stations are kept clean.
