Mumbai: Frequent travellers in Mumbai can breathe a little easy. A train launched by the Central Railways recently has modified seating arrangements that can supposedly accommodate 336 more commuters.
The seating arrangements were tweaked following instructions of a committee formed by Railway minister Suresh Prabhu to ensure passengers' safety on suburban trains in Mumbai section.
The modifications have been carried out in one train at the moment. Bringing long term relief to more than 75 lakh daily commuters on Mumbai suburban rail network will require technological improvements and the Railways claims to be working on it.
A section of offcials believe that cutting down the breadth and size of transformers inside motor coaches would create room to accommodate extra passengers, the Mid Day reported.
“These motor coaches take up half the coach's space. Technologically there is scope to lessen the width of the motor coach that would allow more people to be ferried,” a senior CR official told the daily.
The report also said that space can be created for accommodating commuters inside at least two coaches by halving the space utilised by the motor coaches of a 12-car train,.
The current format of trains with the modifications can accommodate 336 people more during peak hours. However, sources said that in case any changes are made towards reducing the size of transformers — which they feel is possible — it can easily provide accommodation to around 650 more people.
Modified seats have been introduced twice in the Mumbai suburban system - in 1975 and in 2006. The trains were also fondly named Khada Gaadi (standing train) during these experiments. Commuters on both instances rejected the experiment and the Railways did not build more such coaches as a result.
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