Digital boards near rail stations in Chennai to avert accidents

They will advise drivers of incoming trains to slow down to 20 kmph

Soon, digital caution boards will be installed at entry and exit points of a dozen railway stations that have been identified as accident-prone spots.

The government railway police (GRP) said the initiative was part of efforts to prevent people from being run over on the tracks in the city.

The boards will be erected a few metres away from identified stations, along the platform, to ensure drivers of incoming trains, including express trains, are advised to slow down the speed of the train to 20 kmph.

Each suburban train, on an average, travels at speeds of around 90 kmph. “The caution boards will be bright in colour to ensure they are visible to drivers, a few hundred metres away from the stations,” said a GRP officer.

Reduction in the speed of the trains as they near accident-prone stations will help to reduce the number of cases of running over on tracks.

Stations such as Chromepet, Pallavaram, Kodambakkam, Mambalam, Arakkonam and Tiruvallur are among the 12 identified as accident prone, mainly due to high concentration of habitation along the tracks.

At present, the horn is sounded as a train approaches the spot. Of the three major suburban rail routes in the city, Chennai Central–Arakkonam route registered maximum casualties with 378 deaths, followed by Beach–Tambaram route with 350 deaths in 2013.

The lowest number of deaths was recorded on Chennai Central–Gummudipoondi line with 128 deaths including 17 women.

GRP sources said most of the persons who died on the tracks in 2013 were in the age group of 18-30 years. “The trespassers, who are mostly youngsters, cross the tracks while talking over the phone without noticing an incoming train,” said a railway official.