Suburban trains’ contribution: 1/3rd of traffic, 3 per cent of railway earnings

Till March, the AC local carried only 4 lakh passengers since its introduction on December 25, 2017.

THE average earning of suburban railways is Rs 6 from each commuter that travels with a ticket, records received from the Indian Railways indicate. While Mumbai suburban railways carries one-third of the commuting traffic of Indian Railways, it hardly contributes 3 per cent to the total earnings of the railways. Average earnings is a ratio of the total earnings of suburban railways to the total number of passengers that buy a ticket.

Comparatively, the average earnings through operation of mail express trains is Rs 651.74 to the suburban section, figures state. Second-class commuters contribute more than 70 per cent of the total share of the suburban commute. For the largest distance covered by a passenger, the fares of the first-class coach in suburban railways is 14 times more than the fares of a second-class coach.

According to official records from the Indian Railways, both Central and Western Railways carried 2,591 million passengers between 2017-18 up to February 2018. This contributed to 30 per cent to the total passengers who traveled in Indian railways in the corresponding period, which is 7,577 million passengers — almost one-third of the total share. On the contrary, suburban railway earnings of both railways was Rs 1,493 crore in the corresponding period. This makes suburban railways contribute 3.29 per cent to the overall earnings of the Indian Railways in 2017-18 (up to February 2018) which is Rs 45,246 crore.

Subsidised costs of journey ticket fares and increasing number of commuters using the suburban section each year are cited to be the reasons. While commuters using suburban railways has seen a slow growth over the years, there has been no increase in the ticket fares of suburban railways. “In the past 10 years, there has been a slow growth in the average earnings of suburban railways. This is because, the ticket fares of suburban railways has failed to increase as compared to the number of passengers who travel in the section. Railways offer the most subsidised fares as compared to any other mode of transport in the city,” said a senior railway official.

Officials state that passengers with monthly or quarterly passes for travel in suburban trains are more when compared to those with single-journey tickets. This contributes further to the reduced earnings as the railways offer higher subsidy to passengers taking season tickets (passes). “A monthly season ticket charges for only 15 rides of the passengers in a month due to the subsidy offered. As season ticket passengers are more in the suburban section, the earnings continue to be meagre,” the railway official added.

The average ticket fare for a longer distance is lesser when compared to commuters travelling shorter distances. In 2014, the fares of first-class single-journey tickets and first and second-class season tickets was increased by 14.2 per cent. “The Railways should not unnecessarily subsidise the fares of the suburban section. If residents of Mumbai are ready to pay the higher amount, there must be an increase in ticket fares to make up for the increase in passengers,” said A V Shenoy, transport expert.

The Mumbai suburban trains also operate a single air-conditioned local train whose fares are 1.2 times that of a first-class ticket. Till March, the AC local carried only 4 lakh passengers since its introduction on December 25, 2017. “AC travel is not a luxury anymore. While the railways aims at operating only AC trains in future, it could keep a substantial rate of first AC and second AC coaches to ensure it is affordable and profitable to them,” Shenoy added.