The late running of a few trains through Alappuzha could be avoided if the timing of Vande Bharat Express through the district was revised, Friends on Rails, an association of passengers mainly from Kollam and Alappuzha, said in a release issued on Thursday.
This was in response to a release issued by the Southern Railway on Wednesday that said the Vande Bharat Express service had not adversely impacted the journey time of passenger trains through Alappuzha and that they were adhering to their schedule.
“We at Friends on Rails deplore the stand taken by Railway on the issue pertaining to late running of trains, mainly the Ernakulam-Kayankulam passenger train. It was in this context that a demonstration was staged earlier this month at Ernakulam Junction railway station. This was not against Vande Bharat Express. The detention of the passenger train at Kumbalam to make way for the express train could have been limited to 15 minutes, rather than the present detention that often exceeded 40 minutes.”
