Mumbai: Travelling without ticket and crossing tracks is going to get costlier with the Western Railway (WR) planning a four-fold increase in the fine. If the Railway Board clears the proposal, the fine will shoot up to ₹1,000 from ₹250.
“The sheer number of commuters makes it impossible to book everyone. We feel if the penalty is high, it will make people rethink before travelling without ticket,” a railway official said.
In April, the WR booked 3.94 lakh passengers for ticketless journey, which includes carrying luggage not booked. A fine of ₹15.34 crore was recovered, which was 26% more than the figure in April last year. During his visit to the city last week, Ashwani Lohani, chairman, Railway Board, was apprised of the issue.
WR officials have also urged the Railway Board to allow ticket checkers and station masters to levy penalties on commuters found trespassing, crossing tracks, and travelling in wrong coaches.
At present, only the Railway Protection Force (RPF) has the authority to penalise them, who need to produce the offenders before a magistrate. The Centre for Railway Information Systems is also working on getting hand-held devices for ticket checkers to facilitate spot fines.
Railway officials said the incidents of people travelling in coaches reserved for people with disabilities is on the rise. During a drive conducted by the WR, the RPF and the Government Railway Police in April, over 1,000 commuters were caught in the compartment. On an average, around 10 people die on tracks in the suburban section, of which, railway officials said, 65% are due to trespassing and crossing.