KOCHI: It has been more than a week since maintenance work began on the foot overbridge at the Ernakulam Town railway station. Yet, the sole structure linking platforms one and two remains closed, inconveniencing passengers.
Ernakulam Town station -- also known as North station -- is an NSG-3 class station and one of the busiest in the state. “The station registers an average daily footfall of about 28,000,” said K J Paul Manvattom, president of the All Kerala Railway Users’ Association. And it is such a station that lacks an important facility like the foot overbridge, he said.
Work has been on for more than a week. “This station has only one footbridge. As such, whenever a train makes a halt, there is a big rush on the overbridge. Now, when two trains call in simultaneously on both platforms, it results in chaos,” said Manvattom.
Moreover, most trains don’t stop at the station and just pass through. “These are mostly superfast, long-distance trains. Imagine the scenario when an unsuspecting person lands in front of a train bearing down on them while crossing the tracks to get to either of the platforms,” he said.
On Sunday, when the Venad Express came in, people who had jumped onto the tracks to move from platform one to two were forced to climb into the train, said Amrutha G, a passenger. “This is a very risky affair. Will the railways be responsible for any accident?” she asked. They must post more policemen on both platforms to guide passengers, Manvattom added.
Another demand of the association is extension of the operation time of the ticket counter on platform two from 8pm to 12pm. “It is high time that work on the overbridge is completed. This can be done by regulating train traffic. Railways has carried out much bigger projects more quickly. Why then is work on the footbridge being delayed?” asked Rajini R, a daily commuter.
Work will be completed in 1-2 days: Railways
Work on the foot overbridge at Ernakulam Town railway station is progressing at speed and will be completed in a day or two, a spokesperson of Southern Railway’s Thiruvananthapuram division said. “We have also put in place a system to prevent any untoward incident. Railway Police personnel have been posted to ensure that passengers alighting from trains on either platform take the trolley path to cross over,” the spokesperson said. The footbridge had become very unsafe. “Hence, it was decided to repair it on a war footing,” he added.