Ride to heart of city fast, cheap with new services

Ride to heart of city fast, cheap with new services

Ayyappan V

Chennai:





Railways Extends Suburban Trains To Velachery MRTS
Travelling from the western and northern suburbs to the heart of the city has become faster and cheaper, with the railways extending suburban services to MRTS at Velachery. Commuters who would take more than one hour while commuting by bus to the city can now cut down their travel time to less than 40 minutes by train — and at a fraction of the cost.

Commuters can travel from any suburb on the western or northern line to the city for ` `10 as compared with the ` `30 that a ride by bus costs.

For commuters who live in far-flung places like Ennore, Pattabhiram Tiruninravur, a ride to the city by bus takes more than three hours in the peak morning traffic. A train takes between an hour and two hours.

“People have been demanding that railways extend the trains to MRTS because train travel is cheaper and faster,” said T Sadagopan, who frequently uses suburban trains. “Buses go through several neighbourhoods on any given route. This increases travel time.” Metro rail work in Anna Nagar also affected the punctuality of buses from western suburbs into the city, he said.

Most of the buses take commuters to Parry’s Corner though there are a few direct buses from Avadi, Perambur and Nemilichery to Anna Salai and other parts of the city.

These buses are crowded during peak hours, making the journey unpleasant. Commu ters say extension of the ladies’ special train from Arakonam to Velachery will be beneficial for women because commuting by bus is a hassle for them.

The 29C bus from Perambur to Besant Nagar takes 1 hour and 30 minutes to reach Mylapore though the sched uled travel time for the route is only 70 minutes. “Traffic is slow and it takes time for the bus to reach Mylapore. Women commuters can now board the ladies’ special at Perambur and alight at Mylapore MRTS station in 40 minutes,” Sadagopan said.

Rajagopal S, a commuter who travels from Ennore to Beach, said bus services are poor from areas beyond Ennore. “This is why trains are popular,” he said. “As services have been extended to Velachery, a large number of people will switch to trains. The railways should extend more services on the Gummidipoondi-Velachery line.” It takes 1 hour and 20 minutes to travel by train from Ennore to Kotturpuram.

Commuters also want suburban trains from Arakkonam to Tambaram via Beach because there is a huge demand on the route. Many people alight at Moore Market suburban station and cross over to Park station to board trains to Tambaram.

Commuter P Alexy said commuters from Ennore, Minjur and other points on Gummidipoondi line prefer trains because bus fares are high. “It’s best for them to use trains with season tickets,” he said.