Commuters demands more halting time for passenger trains

Kochi: A woman was forced to jump from a moving train onto the platform at Ernakulam Town railway station while her daughter was left behind and could only deboard at Ernakulam South on Monday morning.

This once again raises the concern of passengers that several trains halt time is too little even in busy stations like Ernakulam.Daily commuters filed a complaint with Thiruvananthapuram divisional railway authorities after Guruvayur-Ernakulam passenger train (Train No 56313) started to move before all passengers could alight.Compounding a chronic history of delays, a dangerous combination of outdated infrastructure and rushed station departures is now putting human lives at risk, they cited in the complaint.According to them, the issue stems from a baffling operational decision - twice a week, the railway administration attaches an expired sleeper coach to the heavily crowded passenger train. Because a sleeper coach features only two narrow doors per side, unlike standard general coaches which have three doors on one side, it creates a severe structural bottleneck. For a train packed with office-goers, students and families, this layout cripples passenger movement.

“Nearly 80% of the commuters deboard at Ernakulam North. Because it takes twice as long for crowds to squeeze through the sleeper coach’s limited exits, the train starts moving while passengers are actively attempting to deboard,” said Joyson Ukkran, a regular commuter, who lodged the complaint.Earlier, on June 29, a similar mishap was averted when commuters helped a passenger, who rushed out of the train as it started moving, from falling on the platform.

“Authorities should take measures on war footing to prevent such incidents,” he said.The passenger train, which starts from Guruvayur at 6.50am, is routinely detained at Punkunnam Outer, Ollur, Pudukkad and Angamaly to clear the tracks for late-running express trains like Mangala Express. But the train is rushed out of stations like Aluva and Ernakulam Town to make up for lost time, said another regular commuter Lijesh K R, a native of Thrissur.“There were no RPF personnel deployed and the platforms remained unmonitored and chaotic during peak hours. To avert a major tragedy, Southern Railway administration must increase the halting time (currently 3 minutes), and deploy PRF personnel,” he said.When contacted, the railway authorities promised to consider the extension of halt time at Ernakulam North.