Officials say suburban rail operations smooth and crowds steady; insist commuters must stay cautious and be masked
A worker sanitises CSMT premises as commuters arrive at the station on Saturday. Pics/Atul Kamble
,Nearly a week after their full reopening, Mumbai local trains have had a daily average of 30-35 lakh passengers on Central Railway and Western Railway. Officials said that as the initial rush has subsided, things should be returning to normal. They, however, cautioned that mask-wearing must continue, as will various drives to ensure guidelines are followed.
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Commuters wait as a train arrives at Thane on Saturday
Numbers have more or less remained steady at 95 per cent of service level and we have been monitoring the situation closely. Initially, there were crowds for booking of tickets, refunds and extension of passes, etc. But as things settle down, the chaos is getting lesser and things are heading towards normalcy,” a senior official said.
“However, one cannot be complacent or unguarded. Masks will remain a must and drives against spitting, etc. will continue. Existing restrictions on travel, timings and other mandatory guidelines remain in place,” he added.
A senior state government official said that 15 days after the date of reopening, there would be a review of COVID-19 cases and any further decision would be based on the numbers.
‘Restore passenger trains’
Passenger associations said that the priority should be restoring passenger and intercity express trains to normalcy. There are people working in Mumbai and staying in Pune, Nashik, so the issue is not just Mumbai centric. “The Main Line EMU trains connecting places like Panvel-Vasai, Dahanu, Diva-Sawantwadi and other such sectors should not be ignored. There are office workers dependent on it, presently travelling via road. But road trips have been expensive and tiring,” Divyaprakash Keswani, a commuter on the Diva-Panvel section said.
“Offices have begun at most places and trains should be restored to normalcy. People have lost jobs since it is difficult to commute with trains,” Vijay Rasal, another commuter said.
A Sangli-based Railway Pravasi Group said that Sangli-Kurduvadi Diesel EMU, Satara-Kolhapur Diesel EMU and Sangli-Kolhapur Diesel EMU trains are the local lifelines there, just like Mumbai locals.
“As of now, only reserved passengers have been allowed to travel onboard outstation trains to limit the number of passengers,” an official said, adding that trains are being opened slowly as per directives from Maharashtra government.
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