Expect lesser train services on Central Railway during heavy rains

On August 29, last year, there was heavy rainfall and 45 trains got stranded on tracks, which affected commute for days. This time, however, the situation could be slightly better, as during heavy rains, the Central Railway may tweak its timetable and lessen the number of train services. On a normal day, 1,732 train services are operated, while 1,384 are operated on Sunday.

This would be done to ensure that adequate number of rakes are available to run on the following days, in case some rakes get stranded.

Close to 350 local train services will not be operated during high tide coupled with heavy rainfall. However, this will be done on an experimental basis for two weeks. Based on the response of the public, the railways will decide whether to continue with it or not.

"We are meeting IMD officials next week and will be devising a detailed plan based on the days when heavy rainfall is predicted. If heavy rainfall is predicted but the rainfall recorded turns out to be lower, we will change the timetable and run services normally. When the Municipal Corporation of Greater Mumbai announces the closure of schools and colleges due to heavy rainfall, we will operate less services," said SK Jain, Divisional Railway Manager (Mumbai), Central Railway.

They are also going ahead with a slew of measures to reduce the amount of flooding on railway tracks, which includes the installation of two pumps with a capacity of 1000 cubic metre.