Were you one of those who could not board a train because your waitlisted railway ticket could not get confirmed? Cancelling a train journey for lack of a confirmed seat will be a thing of the past as one has the option to fly at a competitive fare while booking tickets through the Indian Railway Catering and Tourism Corporation (IRCTC)The IRCTC has tied up with GoAir and SpiceJet for the benefit of its patrons in sectors the airlines operate in.
Under the arrangement, the IRCTC will send a mail to all waitlisted passengers who had booked train tickets through its website after the reservation chart of a train is prepared. The date of ticket booking has to be three days prior to the date of journey.
The name of the passenger has to be same while the date of flight booking has to be the same day (date of original train journey or the day after). The passenger can cancel the train ticket and try to get an air ticket through www.air.irctc.co.in for a sector in which flights and seats are available. The facility is available only on those train routes that are also served by airlines.
The price of a flight ticket will be lower than the dynamically priced air fare of the day for the particular airlines.“GoAir has tied up with us, while SpiceJet is yet to pass on its inventory. Talks are on with other airlines,” an IRCTC official said in a release.
The innovative facility for waitlisted passengers has evoked a good response. An important feature of the IRCTC’s tie-ups with the airlines is that passengers will not have to pay dynamically priced air fares. As sectors and seats are limited, he said, bookings would be on first come, first served basis.
The arrangement can be a win-win situation for all the stakeholders.
It will help reduce the waiting list for train tickets during the peak season, and airlines will be able to find customers for their unsold tickets.
IRCTC has tied up with airlines to offer competitive fares
