CHENNAI: The railways' decision to reduce the reservation period (ARP) from 120 days to 60 has received huge support from passengers. However, a section of passengers demanded that travellers who book 60 days ahead but still end up on the waiting list should be given priority in special train berth allocations.
They also demanded effective implementation of the VIKALP scheme which will provide alternative accommodation for waitlisted passengers.
Southern Railway officials noted that under the VIKALP scheme, passengers might not get same-day tickets. Still, efforts are being made to operate MEMU express trains on congested routes for Deepavali.
On Thursday, the Indian Railways attributed its decision to serve the genuine travellers stating that 21% of tickets booked 61 to 120 days in advance were getting cancelled, and only 5% of passengers did not cancel their tickets before starting their journey.
Rail users said regular travellers from the business community, MSMEs, medical representatives, and political party members often book tickets on Fridays and Sundays as soon as the 120-day reservation window opens for busy routes like Chennai to Tirunelveli, Sengottai, Coimbatore, and Thiruvananthapuram.
Many passengers planning tourism trips also book in advance but often cancel their tickets. Incidentally, tickets for pilgrimage travel are usually not cancelled, as it is considered inauspicious. The new ARP, effective from November 1st, is expected to improve ticket utilisation while increasing the railways' responsibility to provide alternatives during holidays and festivals.
Official data shows that overnight trains from Chennai to Coimbatore, Thiruvananthapuram, Mangaluru, Madurai, Tirunelveli, Sengottai, and Nagercoil, among others, operate at full capacity year-round. Daytime intercity services like Vande Bharat, Shatabdi, and Tejas between Chennai and Coimbatore, Bengaluru, and Madurai also see high demand, especially during extended holidays and festival seasons. Despite waitlists exceeding 200–300 two to three months in advance, the railway is unable to provide accommodation for passengers during festival season, say passengers.
R Pandiaraja, former member of the Zonal Rail Users Consultative Committee (ZRUCC), SR said the railways has all the data but has not utilised it effectively to meet demand.
“The waitlisted tickets for the Chennai-Sengottai Pothigai Express reached 300 for the Deepavali festival, and the same is true for the Pandiyan, Nellai, and Kanniyakumari express trains. The railways should run clone trains to accommodate the large number of waitlisted passengers on these specific trains before opening the booking slots for others. Without this, the reduced ARP will be ineffective.”
Meanwhile, A Giri, former member of the Divisional Rail Users Consultative Committee (DRUCC) for Tiruchy, hailed the change, stating that a 60-day booking window is sufficient for most travellers and will help reduce unnecessary bookings.
A spokesperson for Southern Railway explained that available resources (rolling stock and crew) are being used to run special trains to high-demand destinations, such as Shalimar and others during festivals.
“However, shifting waitlisted passengers to reserved coaches on these trains has not been implemented yet. The request for this will be forwarded to the concerned authorities for consideration.”
He added that the cut in ARP will also help the railways to plan well in carrying out safety related maintenance.