The suburban train commuters in the western section, from Avadi, Tiruvallur and beyond, have been affected by delayed train operation every day. To add to their problem is the lack of amenities at several important stations. Southern Railway has initiated renovation of the Ambattur, Avadi, and Tiruvallur stations under the Amrit Bharat Station Scheme. But commuters complain about poor amenities at the other stations.
Social activists allege that unlike the Tambaram-Chennai Beach section, where urban development has stagnated because of clustered residential accommodations, the western section has seen phenomenal residential development along Annanur, Pattabhiram, Thiruninravur, Tiruvallur, Veppampattu, and Nemillichery.
Land availability
The residential development has happened because of the availability of vacant land on both sides of the track at Annanur, Pattabhiram, and Thiruninravur, and the suburban train services to Chennai Central. And the residents depend primarily on the train services to go to the city as bus transport is limited.
The Pattabhiram station, after Avadi, is used by thousands of commuters. But social activists say there are only a few trains and amenities.
K.S. Gopalakrishnan, a former member of the Zonal Railway Users Consultative Committee, says platforms 1 and 2 at the station, which are used for operation of the suburban trains, are in a poor condition. They have not been paved for years. The problem of rugged surface also plagues the footbridge, where if a commuter could fall down the stairs if he is not cautious.
He says that though a shelter was installed on platform 3, it has been designed in such a manner that commuters will get drenched when it rains. It is useful only in shading the commuters on a hot day. The station also suffers from inadequate illumination and absence of fans. Cleanliness on the platforms has gone for a complete toss as fish vendors are allowed to sell in the evenings.
Long wait for ticket
Mr. Gopalakrishnan says the station is used by commuters who are daily wage labourers, who are forced to waste their time waiting at the crowded ticket counters. Previously, three counters operated at morning and evening peak hours, but only two counters operate now and only one works in the morning and evening hours. An automated ticket vending machine (ATVM) has been installed, but most of the commuters, of the low income group, cannot afford to buy a smart card.
At the last meeting, Abdul Hameed, a member of the Divisional Railway Users Consultative Committee (DRUCC), requested opening of additional counters at Pattabhiram.
At Annanur, the commuters live on both sides of the track, but they have access only through the subway linked through the railway shed. It is flooded whenever it rains. The commuters have been seeking a footbridge to access the platforms of the station. At present, the commuters have to walk through the subway or crawl under the parked trains to reach the platforms.
‘No amenities for decades’
Consumer activist T. Sadagopan says the Pattabhiram Military Siding station, located before the E-depot station, has no amenities even five decades after the station came up. He points out that several residential colonies have come up, with retired defence personnel settling in the localities. Railway officials have not taken any action on petitions for a footbridge.
More than 60,000 commuters use the Thiruninravur station, located before Tiruvallur, every day. Under the aegis of the Thiruninravur Rail Passengers Welfare Association, they have been requesting for basic amenities at the station.
S. Murugaian, secretary of the association, lists the demands: construction of a subway linking the platforms, speeding up of the construction of the overbridge, establishment of a Government Railway Police post, installation of an electronic display board and closed circuit television cameras, the construction of an additional cycle and two-wheeler stand, and laying of a proper access road on the north and south sides of the station.
Feasibility study
A senior official of the Chennai Division of Southern Railway says platform shelters have been installed at the Pattabhiram station in compliance with the norms and a feasibility study will be conducted for building new shelters.
As for the demand for opening an additional ticket counter, the official says two counters are in operation; one of them functions round the clock and the other works during the day time. For opening an additional counter, the Railway Board has set the norm of 1,000 tickets a day, but at Pattabhiram, the tickets sold daily stand at 935.
Steps will be taken to install drinking water facilities at the Pattabhiram, Annanur, and Thiruninravur stations, as demanded at the DRUCC meeting, the official says.
