7.49pm AC local is most popular on Mumbai’s western line, shows survey

A comparative survey conducted by western railway (WR) officials over the course of two months has revealed that the 7.49pm AC local from Churchgate to Virar railway station is the most popular AC local train on the down line. The 7.49pm local carries the maximum number of passengers — a daily average of 11,918.

The second local which carries the most number of people is the 5.49pm local, with a daily average of 4,080 commuters. On the up line, the 10.22am local between Virar and Churchgate, has been noted to be the most popular with a daily passenger count of 6,498. The 7.54am, with 5,200 daily commuters, is the second most popular.

“The purpose of conducting the survey was to study the commuting pattern among the AC train travelers. Over the two months when the survey was conducted, there has been an increase in the passengers travelling during peak hours,” said a senior WR official.

Other AC local trains that operate throughout the day carry around 800 passengers daily. WR is now considering acting on the demand of commuters to operate AC locals on Saturday as well.

The AC locals are currently not operated on Saturdays and Sundays for maintenance purposes. The first AC locals began operations in December last year, and crossed the 10-lakh passenger mark within the first five months. In February, 2.28 lakh passengers travelled in the AC local. this number increased to 3.13 lakh in March and 3.54 lakh in April.