CHENNAI: With local trains on the Chennai-Gummidipundi section regularly taking at least 40-50 more than the travel time by road, north Chennai residents have urged the authorities to set up a dedicated corridor for suburban trains. They have urged the railways to build a third and fourth track along a 25km stretch from Athipattu Pudhunagar to Gummidipundi.
Residents claim that track capacity has not been expanded to keep up with population growth over the past three decades. Consequently, trains take two hours to cover the 46km journey from Chennai to Gummidipundi, while it only takes 70 minutes by road on the Chennai-Chengalpattu and Chennai-Arakkonam routes. Beyond Athipattu, suburban trains often halt at stations to allow express trains to pass. Passengers also allege that the number of train services at night in these sections has been reduced, causing huge hardship to them.
Officials from the Chennai railway division said a location survey for laying a third and fourth line from Athipattu Pudhunagar to Gummidipundi has been completed, and approval from the railway board is awaited. “Two night services were cancelled to facilitate maintenance which is essential for smooth operation of trains,” said an official.
The Chennai-Athipattu-Gummidipundi-Gudur section is one of the busiest routes in Southern Railway, handling suburban/MEMU trains, express and goods trains round the clock. Trains on this route often compete for the green signal in both directions. While third and fourth lines were laid in phases between 2012 and 2023 on the 21-km stretch from Chennai Central to Korukkupet to Athipattu, these additional lines have been used primarily for freight trains.
According to S Suresh Babu, president of Billakuppam village welfare association (Gummidipundi), the October 11 collision between an express and a goods train at Kavaraipettai could have been prevented if more tracks were available. “The railways, in their response to my petition, said the third and fourth lines from Chennai to Athipattu Pudhunagar were built mainly for goods trains, but they assured that delay and punctuality issues will be addressed,” he said.
Babu also noted that employees commuting from Sipcot Gummidipoondi and Sipcot Thervoykandigai make up a substantial portion of the ridership. “Despite the increasing demand every year, this section remains neglected,” he added.