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Just when everybody had given up hope of commuting comfortably in Chennai, without getting caught in traffic snarls, Southern Railway commenced passenger train services on a single line basis in the MRTS section between Mylapore and Tiruvanmiyur on Republic Day and delivered them from their troubles.

People from all walks of life have welcomed the move by Southern Railway to operate EMUs in this section.

Revenue has also picked up, says M Sounder Rajan, station manager, Chennai Beach. The total ticket revenue on the first day (Jan 26) was Rs 7,056, more than double that of the average daily revenue from Chennai Beach in the MRTS section.

He also said Southern Railway has earned a total revenue of Rs 23,101 in ticket sales and Rs 14,095 in season tickets sales from January 26 to February 3 this year.

The electrical multiple unit (EMU) operated in this section consists of three coaches, which is not enough during peak hours, Kannan, a student of the Central Poly Technic (CPT), Taramani, complains.

An executive of a multi-national company in Tidel Park wants Southern Railway to operate a six-coach EMU for the convenience of the commuters.

Seetha, working in a private company in Taramani and a resident of Villivakam welcomed the Ministry of Railways' move to operate trains from Chennai Beach to Tiruvanmiyur. Earlier she had to suffer traffic jams and packed buses. "No more traffic jams now and I am able to come to Tiruvanmiyur by alighting at Chennai Beach Station and changing over there to an MRTS train."

Seetha also appealed Southern Railway to operate train services upto 9 p.m. for the convenience of employees in private companies who work late into the evening.

Gayathri, working in a company at Tidel Park, speaking about her expierence of travel by the 'Flying Train', said it was cost-effective and comfortable, compared to buses. "It is cheaper to buy a season ticket, as it costs only Rs 90 from Mylapore to Tiruvanmiyur.There is no traffic jam, no waiting time."

She said most of the Tidel Park staff were shifting to MRTS. "Bus travel cannot compare with train travel, even if it's cheaper, because of the kind of traffic jam we face on the roads from Kotturpuram to Madhya Kailash signal. Just when one wished they could fly over this area, we seem to have got the 'Flying Train'."

The trains travel at a speed of 65 kmph, taking 30 minutes to reach Tiruvanmiyur from Chennai Beach. Bus travel takes anywhere between 45 minutes to one hour to reach the same destination.

There is a peculiarity in the operation of the 'Flying Train' between Mylapore and Tiruvanmiyur. Like in olden days, when the signal man used to pass on a key to the driver or guard, the signal man at Mylapore gives a iron baton, which is inscribed with the words 'Only one train: Thirumaylai-Thiruvanmiyur: MTMY-TYMR'.

The guard/driver returns the baton to the other signal man at Tiruvanmiyur and gets the other baton from him and returns to Mylapore. When the signal man gives the baton to the guard/driver, it means that the line is clear and the train can move ahead.

According to a Southern Railway official, the number of services in the section would be increased soon, depending on the demands of the commuters.

Work, was stopped after land sank in the Perungudi-Velachery section, will start soon, as an IIT expert group and a Lucknow-based institution have examined the site and given the go-ahead, he added.

To know more about the Mass Rapid Transit System (MRTS), let's go back in history a little.

The Railway Ministry took the responsibility of implementing the first phase of MRTS from Chennai Beach to Mylapore, a stretch of 8.96 km with 2.75 km on the surface and 6.21 km on an elevated stretch, in 1983-84. The project was given the green light by the Union Planning Commission and also cleared by the Railway Board in the same year, at an estimated cost of Rs 53.46 crore.

The project was completed and commissioned on October 19, 1997, but the cost at the time of completion crossed the granted limit of Rs 53.46 crore and finally Rs 260 crore was spent. It is now fully operational with 112 services per day. This phase covers the stretch between Mylapore and Chennai Beach.

There were eight stations (inclusive of Beach and Mylapore) in phase-I, out of which four (Chintadripet, Chepauk, Tiruvallikeni, Light House) are in the elevated stretch. The whole MRTS section was planned with dual line, one for up and one for down traffic movement.

The second phase of the project, costing Rs 689 crore, the cost being shared by the state government and Railways in a 2:1 ratio, was targeted for completion by 2002, but until now it has not been completed. The length of the second phase is 11.165 km with 3.318 km on the surface and 7.848 km on elevated structures.

The second phase uses improved technologies such as ballastless tracks. As per plans, MRTS phase-II is to run up to Velachery and efforts are being taken by the Ministry of Railways to clear all the problems in the section beyond Tiruvanmiyur.

A trial run was conducted by Southern Railway on phase-2 from Mylapore to Tiruvanmiyur in which the then Minister of State for Railways, A K Moorthy, took part and said the section has been made ready to operate passenger services.

After that Commissioner of Railway Safety P K Sen inspected the section and gave his clearance to operate EMU services.

Tamil Nadu agreed and handed over 19.68 hectares of government land and 0.54 hectare of private land to Railways free of cost.

There will be nine stations between Mylapore and Velachery, which will include Mandaveli, Greenways Road, Kotturpuram, Kasturba Nagar, Indira Nagar, Tiruvanmiyur, Taramani-I, Perungudi (from here the stations will on the ground), Velachery.

The fare from Chennai Beach to Tiruvanmiyur is Rs 7 for second class and Rs 52 for first class. Monthly season ticket will cost Rs 105 for second class and Rs 400 for first class. Quarterly season ticket costs Rs 285 for second class and Rs 1,110 for first class.

A passenger going from Mylapore to Tiruvanmiyur will have to pay Rs 6 for second class and Rs 43 for first class, Rs 90 for second class monthly season ticket and Rs 340 for first class season ticket. Quarterly season ticket costs Rs 245 for second class and first class costs Rs 950.

A total of 26 services would be operated from Chennai Beach to Tiruvanmiyur in both directions. An EMU with three coaches will be operated, halting en route at all stations. The train takes 30 minutes to reach Tiruvanmiyur from Chennai Beach.

To facilitate completion of passenger amenities and safety-related works, there will be no train services between Mylapore and Tiruvanmiyur on Saturdays and Sundays.

Chennaivasis hope that soon Southern Railways would finish the pending works from Perungudi to Velachery and start train services up to Velacherry soon.

The Tamil Nadu government, in association with the Ministry of Railways, has carried out a detailed survey for the next phase of MRTS from Velachery to St Thomas Mount, costing Rs 378 crore.

Go Chennai, go.

N Arun Kumar