It’s a hit! Indian Railways’ first AC local train in Mumbai earns over Rs 40 crore in two years

Mumbai AC Local Train: The first broad gauge air conditioned (AC) local train to run on Indian Railways’ network has completed two years on Wednesday. The Western Railway zone, under which the AC local train operates, claimed that it has earned an amount of Rs 40.03 crore from 95.81 lakh passengers. According to a PTI report, the country’s first AC local is equipped with the indigenous 3-phase propulsion system of Bharat Heavy Electricals Limited (BHEL). The train arrived in Mumbai in the month of May 2017. However, after undergoing various safety trials for months, the AC local train was finally pressed into public service from 25 December 2017.

At present, approximately 18,000 commuters travel daily by the AC local on an average, with around 1,500 passengers travelling in each service, the Western Railway claimed. In a press release, the zone stated that during the period of two years, the total sale of tickets for Mumbai’s AC local train was 8,43,343. Out of these, a number of 6,62,565 tickets were single journey tickets, while 1,80,778 tickets were season tickets.

Currently, the Western Railway zone is operating a total of 12 AC local train services, of which eight are fast services running between Churchgate and Virar, while three services are fast services running between Churchgate and Borivali. The one remaining AC local train service runs as slow service between Mahalaxmi and Borivali.

Initially, the AC local train was given limited stops at Mumbai Central, Andheri, Borivali, Dadar, Bandra, Bhayander and Vasai Road stations. However, new stops were added later on at Marine Lines, Charni Road, Mira Road, Naigaon, Grant Road, Dahisar and Nallasopara stations. The AC local train consists of 12 coaches. Also, the local train boasts various state-of-the-art security features such as talk back system, automatic door closing system as well as fire fighting system in each coach.

Source: Financial Express