Commuters recall nightmarish experience in overcrowded local trains during peak rush

MUMBAI: Commuters who travel along the Kalyan- Thane stretch, where 4 people died and 9 were injured after some of them fell off a moving local train on Monday, said overcrowding was a major issue which needs to be tackled on an urgency.Said businessman and regular commuter on this stretch, Basudev Shaw Basu : “After 8 am, there is a huge crowd for trains coming from far flung suburbs beyond Kalyan and people from other stations struggle to board. A few semi-fast trains stop at Mumbra and I have seen people pushing and arguing. Office goers come with bags and there is no space available on the rack which is packed already. There should definitely be staggered working hours for office goers.”He further said : “Majority in the train have work shifts starting 9-10 am and they are in a desperate hurry to board. This leads to people hanging from the doors. Travelling by road is hardly an option for it will take 2.5 hours to reach South Mumbai. The train reaches in an hour and a half.”Another commuter and Dombivli resident Sujoy Karmakar said : “People travel like packed sardines in train coaches. Overcrowded trains are like a gas chamber especially during the humid weather in monsoon.

I am not against AC trains but the problem starts once you replace a non AC regular train with AC service. This is the primary cause for overcrowding (in regular trains) during peak hours (since the non-AC crowd builds up). Besides, not all of us can afford an AC ticket. Many commuters I know have switched to Kalyan slow and they prefer travelling a bit later as long as they are comfortably seated.”Said a harried commuter Dharmesh Shah : “In the past, it was east to alight at Dombivli station from a Karjat or Kasara bound fast train during evening hours. But now it’s a nightmare getting down at Thane and also Dombivli platforms, where people who are struggling to board, push you back inside the train. It’s a struggle to alight at one's destination, fighting against all odds and getting injured on the arms and back in the process.”