CHENNAI: Southern Railway recorded a 4.9% increase in passenger traffic in 2025–26, carrying 76.76 crore passengers compared to 73.18 crore in the previous financial year. The zone also exceeded the Railway Board’s target of 76.15 crore passengers.
The rise in originating passenger traffic boosted revenue, with earnings reaching Rs 8,269 crore, a 9.7% increase over Rs 7,535 crore last year, surpassing the annual target of Rs 8,119 crore, according to an official statement.
The growth has been attributed to the operation of additional special trains, improved reservation measures, including booking of vacant seats up to 15 minutes before departure at intermediate stations, and augmentation of general second-class coaches, with 294 coaches added across 198 trains.
Ticket-checking revenue touched a record Rs 160.75 crore, marking a 30.93% increase from Rs 129.82 crore in the previous year. The zone has also achieved 100% implementation of Handheld Terminals (HHTs) across all trains to improve transparency and efficiency.
Freight loading stood at 42.113 million tonnes (MT), registering a 1.1% year-on-year increase from 41.670 MT. Freight revenue rose marginally to Rs 3,841.11 crore from Rs 3,825.83 crore.
Non-fare revenue (NFR) grew by 10.42% to Rs 73.68 crore, driven by initiatives such as multi-level parking at Chennai Egmore, rail coach restaurants, sports turfs at stations including Velachery, and on-board magazine distribution.
Earnings from catering stood at Rs 128.12 crore, while parking revenue totalled Rs 81.5 crore, supported by premium brand outlets and digitised parking facilities, the statement added.