Commuters demand halt of fast local trains at Ambattur railway station

CHENNAI: Rail passengers from Ambattur, especially workers from Ambattur Industrial Estate, have demanded stoppage of fast local trains at their station citing they face considerable hardships while traveling towards Chennai.

Railway officials say being a major station in Western Chennai, Ambattur station witnesses daily passenger footfall of around 30,000.

“I travel daily from Arakkonam to Ambattur Industrial Estate for work. Since fast locals have no stop at Ambattur, I have to either alight at Tiruninravur, Villivakkam or Perambur and depend on other modes to reach my workplace,” said Tamilmani E, a daily commuter.

This extra travel not only increases time but also their transportation costs.

“In 2019, Ambattur got an experimental halt for Yelagiri and Sapthagiri express, but due to platform constraints they discontinued the halt; the SR said that after construction the platform to accommodate 24 coaches will provide a halt but never implemented it,” said Saravanan L, coordinator of Ambattur Rail Commuter Group.

Ambattur station comes under the Amrit Bharat Station Scheme (ABSS), which aims to improve infrastructure facilities at major stations. But commuters claim there is a lack of focus on improving amenities at the station.

“Railways placed concrete boxes and finished their work on the subway, but the State Government, even after a year, has not started their part of work. We have asked for an extension of the foot bridge from platform 2 and 3 to under construction platform 4, but there has been no response from the SR side,” Saravanan added.

When contacted, an official attached to SR’s Chennai division said around 70 per cent of the work under ABSS has been completed and the remaining work is in process. The need for an express train halt has been notified and the proposal given to the Railway Board.