It has been more than a year since Southern Railway completed the third line between Tambaram and Chengalpattu. Thereafter, the Tamil Nadu government agreed to fund the fourth line. But instead of increasing the number of suburban services from Chengalpattu to Tambaram and Chennai Beach, the Railways has cut down on them, say commuters.
Raghuraman, a regular commuter who takes the train at Perungalathur, said that except at peak hours, the services are available only in the interval of 30-40 minutes, causing severe hardship to commuters, especially at night. “If a person is unable to catch a train at 9 p.m., the next train is scheduled only for 9.30 p.m., forcing him to opt for buses or private transport. Even in the Mass Rapid Transit System (MRTS), trains are available every 20 minutes,” he says.
Shuttle services
Commuters said Southern Railway should at least bring back the shuttle services between Tambaram and Chengalpattu as there are services in the interval of 10-15 minutes from Tambaram to Beach. The shuttle services were stopped when the meter gauge was converted to the broad gauge. The number of suburban commuters is yet to reach the pre-COVID-19 level when more than 10 lakh persons travelled daily in four sections — Beach-Chengalpattu through Tambaram; the MRTS (Velachery-Beach); Beach/Moore Market suburban complex-Avadi/Tiruvallur; and Beach-Gummiddipoondi.
The Beach-Chengalpattu service through Tambaram enjoys the highest patronage. It is being used by hundreds of office-goers in the suburbs and those from the city going to the industrial areas of Maraimalai Nagar, Guduvanchery and Perungalathur. However, the services are dependable only in the morning and evening rush hours. According to the 2023 data, the number of passengers is 6.53 lakh per day, with the Chennai Division operating 621 trains. The Beach-Tambaram/Chengalpattu section has the highest patronage, of 2.91 lakh passengers per day.
Services curtailed
With the Kilambakkam bus terminus expected to be opened in the coming months and Southern Railway sanctioning a halt station there, the number of passengers on the route would increase exponentially. Ironically, the Chennai Division has decreased the services in all four sections at off-peak hours, citing maintenance. In the new time table that came into effect on July 14 for suburban trains, more than 25 services have been removed from three sections, except Gummidipoondi. In the Beach-Tambaram-Chengalpattu section, nine services were cut. Eight services towards Avadi/Tiruvallur and nine services in the MRTS were taken off.
The commuters fear that once the the Kilambakkam bus terminus is inaugurated, the number of passengers would increase further, leading to jam-packed trains between Tambaram and Chengalpattu. With the Tambaram station being developed as a third terminal for long-distance services and Chengalpattu gaining importance as a halt station for these trains, it is important to operate more services, the commuters note.
J. Ranganathan, secretary, Kanchipuram-Chennai Rail Commuters’ Association, said the third line was completed after a delay of three years and at an increased cost. But the line has not been fully utilised. Senior railway officials cited the pending work as the reason, he said. “If the third line becomes fully operational, more fast trains could be operated for the benefit of office-goers who travel from as far away as Kancheepuram,” he said.
The commuters taking the Chengalpattu route towards Tambaram and Beach, however, hoped for more services after the Chennai Division announced that the services on the Tambaram-Chengalpattu stretch would be increased, once track consolidation work was completed, after August 15. But, to their disappointment, the services have not been increased.
After the decrease in the services following the COVID-19 lock-down, the commuters say they have been forced to take costly private transport. At a recent press conference, Chennai Divisional Railway Manager B. Vishwanath Eerya said the focus of the Indian Railways was on safety after the Balasore accident. The Railway Board directed all the railway zones to take up track maintenance regularly. The Chennai Division was taking up track maintenance on a large scale and once the work was completed, the proposal for increasing the suburban services would be considered, he said.
A senior official said the Railway Board had accorded sanction for carrying out a survey for the fourth line of between Tambaram and Chengalpattu, and work would begin soon.
