CHENNAI: Amid growing demand from passengers for a dedicated intercity express between Chennai and Tiruvannamalai due to heavy patronage, the Southern Railway has decided to augment the existing MEMU trains by increasing the number of coaches from 12 to 16.
With the addition of four extra coaches, the Beach - Tiruvannamalai MEMU’s total carrying capacity-both seating and standing-will increase by 1,200 passengers per trip and this will be the longest MEMU train to be operated in Tamil Nadu. Currently, a 12-coach MEMU rake can carry 3,600 passengers per trip, and this will go up to 4,800 after the augmentation.
According to the notification issued, the Chennai Beach-Tiruvannamalai MEMU, Tambaram-Villupuram MEMU, and Villupuram-Chennai Beach MEMU will operate with a 16-coach rake instead of 12. The revised coach composition will come into effect from February 23 for the Tambaram-Villupuram and Villupuram-Tambaram services, and from February 24 for the Chennai Beach-Tiruvannamalai service. The MEMU departing Tiruvannamalai on February 25 will also run with a 16-coach rake,
Similarly, the Coimbatore-Mettupalayam MEMU and Palakkad-Coimbatore MEMU services will also be upgraded to 12-car rakes. This will increase the carrying capacity of each train by 1,200 passengers per trip. The revised composition will come into effect from February 23. At present, the Chennai-Tiruvannamalai MEMU trains in both directions operate with overcrowded coaches throughout the year.
S Rajamanickam of Tiruvannamalai said, “A dedicated intercity train from Tambaram or Chennai Central to Tiruvannamalai should be introduced with two pairs of services daily.”