Local trains see rise in passengers

MUMBAI: Around 6 million passengers travelled by local trains last week after lockdown restrictions were eased. The Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC) eased relaxations in the city on August 2.

As part of the relaxations, essential and non-essential shops and establishments are allowed to remain open till 10pm while hotels and restaurants are allowed to remain open till 4pm. All indoor and outdoor sports activities apart from swimming have also been allowed.

Following this, the suburban railway network has witnessed an increase in number of passengers.

Nearly 3.4 million passengers travelled by trains on Central Railway (CR) and 2.6 million passengers on the Western

Railway (WR) last week. Before relaxations, around 800,000 people travelled by local trains on CR and nearly 500,000 on WR every day.

“We have witnessed an increase in the number of passengers throughout the week after relaxations were announced. People who are not authorised to commute have also been found travelling,” said a senior railway official.

General public are presently not allowed to travel by local trains. Only people working in essential care and citizens travelling for medical purposes are permitted to commute.

The railways have also witnessed an increase in the number of ticketless commuters. Between April and July, 304,000 passengers were fined for travelling without ticket and proper identification on CR and 234,000 passengers on WR.