The gradual shift of maintenance to the Virar carshed, where a new workshop is being built, will ensure emptier trains for commuters living in far-flung suburbs like Vasai, Nala Sopara and Virar
As Ravindra Gupta, Member (Rolling Stock), Railway Board visited the Virar carshed and Mahalaxmi and Matunga workshops on Thursday, he made two important suggestions — uniformly coloured rakes across the network and gradually shifting the maintenance of trains from Mahalaxmi to Virar.
The gradual shift of maintenance to the Virar carshed, where a new workshop is being built, will ensure emptier trains for commuters living in far-flung suburbs like Vasai, Nala Sopara and Virar. Over a period of time, the local trains maintained by both Central Railway (CR) and Western Railway (WR) will be merged in a way that there is no shortfall in trains and can be easily interchanged. "Currently, around seven to eight trains undergo periodic overhauling daily at the Mahalaxmi carshed that has a workshop," said a WR official.
Staff is being trained for this purpose. Trains that start from Mahalaxmi and go empty till Virar can be cut-short with the new system, believe WR officials. The Virar carshed has been built at a cost of Rs 318 crore and has the capacity to park 70 to 80 rakes.
Currently, local trains on the system have different colour combinations. For the first time, the Indian Railways has decided to have a uniform colour for all the local trains which will not include the AC local. "The railway minister wants a single colour-combination for all local trains. We will be painting all trains like the Bombardier-made rakes. The AC local will continue with the existing colour combination," said a senior railway official.
According to sources, commuters also asked Gupta to make WR issue tickets inside the AC local. The suggestions will be taken forth to the Railway Board in Delhi which has decided the fare structure of AC local.
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 "Ravindra Gupta")
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