Metro to crack the whip on munching at stations

World over, it is a common practice to forbid passengers from eating in stations and on trains of Metro Rail systems

One of the reasons suburban and MRTS stations and trains in Chennai are dirty is because passengers eat and litter the food and packaging.

For decades now, commuters taking the Mass Rapid Transit System (MRTS) and suburban rail have had the luxury of buying food items and eating, in stations and on trains.

But try nibbling a snack at any of the Chennai Metro Rail stations or trains at your own peril.

“Passengers can carry food; but they will not be permitted to eat. We would have CCTV cameras installed in stations to monitor passengers’ activities. If they continue to eat even after an initial warning, then we will confiscate,” an official of CMRL said.

This step would go a long way in keeping the stations clean, he added.

World over, it is a common practice to forbid passengers from eating in stations and on trains of Metro Rail systems.

The stations will have paid and unpaid areas. Once passengers get past the fare gates, they enter the paid area and will not be allowed to eat. Similar to Delhi Metro Rail, there may be kiosks at Chennai Metro stations, too, but passengers can only purchase the food items, and will not be allowed to consume them at the kiosks.

K.S. Gopalakrishnan, former member of Zonal Railway Users’ Consultative Committee, Southern Railway, said, “One of the reasons why the suburban and MRTS stations and trains are dirty is because passengers eat and litter the food and packaging; also, the maintenance is pretty bad. So, it is a welcome move that passengers are barred from eating in Metro Rail stations. After all, it is just a half-hour journey that you have to put up with without eating.”

Chennai Metro is likely to begin operations by mid-November, according to officials.