Western, Central railways to run more AC local services from Monday

Sumit Thakur, Chief Public Relations Officer of WR, said a decision to increase AC local services was taken due to the significant rise in the number of passengers opting for AC trains. To improve passenger convenience and reduce overcrowding, these 17 additional services will operate as AC services on weekdays (Monday to Friday) and as non-AC services on weekends (Saturday and Sunday).

However, despite the introduction of these AC services, the total number of services will remain the same at 1,394. Additionally, a train route that currently runs between Dahanu Road and Andheri stations will be extended to Churchgate, resulting in schedule adjustments for some suburban services, Thakur said.

Out of the 17 new services, nine will run in the UP direction, and eight will operate in the DOWN direction. In the UP direction, there will be one service each between Nalasopara and Churchgate, Virar and Borivali, and Bhayandar and Borivali. There will also be two services between Virar and Churchgate and four services between Borivali and Churchgate. In the DOWN direction, there is one service each between Churchgate and Bhayandar, Borivali and Virar, as well as three services each between Churchgate and Virar and Churchgate and Borivali.

Rajiv Singhal, a former member of the Divisional Railway Users Consultative Committee and a regular AC local user, opined that the increase in the number of AC services, considering the high demand, is relatively low. AC locals are consistently at full capacity, and he believes that introducing more trains would better serve passenger requirements.

In terms of ridership data with the WR, AC local trains recorded 31.3 lakh passengers in October, exceeding the September figure of 28.68 lakh. From April to October in the current financial year, WR reported 2.08 crore (99%) ridership on AC local trains, as opposed to 2.31 crore in the previous financial year 2022-23. Whereas in October, the CR recorded 17.38 lakh passenger ridership from AC locals and the revenue earned was Rs 7.9 crore from the existing 66 services.

The ticket cost of a non-AC local train is between Rs 5 to Rs 35 for a one-way journey and Rs 105 to Rs 500 for a month-long season ticket. Whereas the AC train travel ticket costs between Rs 35 to Rs 165 for a one-way commute and Rs 650 to Rs 3,150 for a month-long season ticket.

An official from WR, who did not wish to be named, said that of the overall ridership strength, 4% of suburban commuters travel in the AC services that are being offered and contribute 22% of the revenue. Consequently, the increase in services is in response to rising demand and an evolving transportation landscape, including the parallel operation of Metro services. With the launch of the elevated Metro Line 2A and 7 from Andheri to Dahisar, railways aim to align their offerings with the comfort and safety standards offered by the Metro to sustain passenger ridership in the long run.

Currently, WR operates six AC rakes, and each rake typically makes 10 to 11 trips.