Western Railways to continue special trains to Bihar, UP, West Bengal; adds coaches to manage festive rush

“For the convenience of passengers, reserved trains are running from Vadodara station to Mau, Kolkata and Gorakhpur, while two unreserved trains are running from Pratapnagar to Katihar and Jaynagar. Information about special trains is being disseminated to passengers through print, electronic and social media. Lists of special trains have been displayed at adequate locations throughout the station, and announcements are being made continuously over the PA system… The trains will be extended to meet the anticipated rush as well as for those who will look to return to Gujarat. There are very few passengers who now travel unreserved, and so such arrangements are necessary,” Bhadke said.

He added that special efforts have been made to manage crowds in anticipation of the additional rush of passengers. “A 350-square-metre waiting area has been created at Vadodara station, where passengers can rest before their train arrives. The waiting area includes basic amenities such as seating arrangements, clean drinking water and adequate lighting… The special trains were designated to Platform 6 at Vadodara Railway Station, and some trains that arrive on Platform 3 were also diverted to manage crowds. We also designated some trains to start from Pratapnagar,” he said.

Round-the-clock ticket checking and additional Railway Protection Force (RPF) staff have been deployed at Ankleshwar, Bharuch, Vadodara, Chhayapuri and Godhra stations to assist passengers. “A war room has been set up at the divisional office, where senior officials are monitoring passenger traffic, their safety and station facilities… Additional booking counters have been opened at Pratapnagar and Vadodara stations to ensure passengers do not face any inconvenience in purchasing tickets. Mobile ticketing has also been implemented by ticket checkers to facilitate ticketing,” Bhadke said.

He added that passenger footfall at the stations is being continuously monitored and CCTV cameras are being used to ensure safety. RPF personnel equipped with walkie-talkies and body-worn cameras have been deployed.

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