‘MoS Railways says lower AC local fares soon’

Representative image. Pic/ istock

The ticket fares for air-conditioned local trains would be lowered soon, a passengers' association said on Wednesday. The ticket costs would be similar to that of Metro trains. In his first admission to Mumbai-based passenger associations in the city on Wednesday, Minister of State for Railways Raosaheb Danve assured that the fares would be lowered very soon.

"We strongly conveyed to the minister that the AC train was not patronised because of the high fare structure. On this, Danveji told us that the proposal to lower the fares was already under consideration and will be in force soon," said Subhash Gupta of Rail Yatri Sangh Mumbai. Mumbai commuters had criticised the introduction of additional AC locals due to high fare, and because of fewer trains during the rush hour.

Central Railway will be introducing 36 new services, including 34 air-conditioned ones, on the new Thane-Diva lines on Friday. Prime Minister Narendra Modi will launch the new services. Union Railways Minister Ashwini Vaishnaw, during a meeting with concerned departments on October 12, agreed to lower the fares, but a formal announcement was awaited. Currently, the minimum ticket fare, for the first 5 km, is R65 and the proposal is to bring it down to R10. The highest charge of Rs 220 is proposed to be reduced to Rs 80.

Rs 80
The proposed highest ticket fare for AC trains