Western Railway (WR) earned ₹6 lakh a day on an average from its sole air conditioned (AC) local in May. The service has been gaining popularity ever since it was introduced last Christmas. The ridership spiked in April and May, during which WR earned ₹3.2 crore, nearly half of its total earnings between December and May.
The AC train runs 12 daily services between Monday and Friday. In May, it ferried 1,336 passengers on an average per service. According to WR officials, peak hour services are the most popular and ferry more passengers than its seating capacity of 1,036, with the 7.49 p.m. Churchgate local to Virar being the most popular, carrying over 11,000 passengers on average. However, the service is still a long way to go to maximise its carrying capacity of 5,000. In May, on an average, the service ferried 27% of the carrying capacity on a daily basis.
Vivek Shelar, a Borivali resident, has been travelling regularly in the AC local. “I take the 7.54 a.m. local from Borivali and the 5.49 p.m. service from Churchgate. It is an extremely good service and helped in the summer. The only drawback is that it is the only train. If I miss a train then there is no option but to take the regular local,” he said.
The figure for AC season tickets stood at 27,298 at the end of May. Commuters felt more AC trains should be run during peak hours. Officials said a second AC local should arrive in the city by the year-end.