The Southern Railway has decided to withdraw Kerala’s first Diesel Electric Multiple Unit (DEMU) train service that it introduced about two weeks ago between Ernakulam Junction and Harbour Terminus on Willingdon Island, citing poor patronage.
Fewer than 15 people travel in the three-coach train during each trip in the 8-km corridor. The daily income was just ₹500, while the operational expenditure was over ₹35,000.
It is not feasible to extend the DEMU service beyond Ernakulam Junction due to ongoing track maintenance works in Kerala and subsequent imposition of speed curbs, says a press release.
Electrification of the the Ernakulam-Harbour Terminus section will be pursued in consultation with the Ministry of Defence, it adds, in the backdrop of the Navy having expressed reservations in the past about pulling electric lines in the vicinity of its airport.
This work can be done within two months, enabling trains that terminate at Ernakulam Junction to be berthed on the 72-acre premises between Mattancherry Halt and Harbour Terminus stations. This will decongest Ernakulam Junction, thus speeding up train movement through the district, says a senior Railway official.
