End to waiting list dilemma; Railways mulls new plan to wipe away waiting lists by 2027

THIRUVANANTHAPURAM: The Railway Board has finally approved a plan to put an end to the waiting list misery alerting passengers. The board is now on a move to shipshape congested routes across India and thus, Kerala will stand a chance in the newly proposed reforms. The first phase will be implemented within three years and the railway targets to end the waiting list practice by 2030.

It is estimated that the project can be implemented by increasing the number of tracks and increasing the speed of trains. Considering Kerala, the Chennai –Thiruvananthapuram train has the most passenger count and is followed by Thiruvananthapuram-Mangalore train. In these two routes, more than 50% of tickets fall in the waiting list category. The same is the case considering Northeastern states where there is a huge influx of migrant workers. All these are on the list of the busiest High Corridor routes.

Compared to 2022, there has been a staggering rise in passengers in trains which is exactly 38 crore more than the previous year. Railways consider 75% of the country's railways as high corridors. It is only on the rest 25% of railway routes that the passengers have a good chance of getting their tickets confirmed. The move for the comprehensive plan comes after repeated incidents of passengers losing lives in the rush during festival seasons including Diwali.

Vande Bharat will increase the number of push-pull trains by 35% in the plan and will run more trains on high-demand corridors with average speed. Faster Push-pull trains and Vande Bharat will be built in accordance with the plan. Considering this move, the railway aims to bring in 3000 new trains by 2027 to achieve its mission of eradicating the waiting list dilemma.