Bus fare rise drives people to the tracks

PUDUCHERRY: Railways have become the preferred mode of travel following the hike in bus fares,  first by the Tamil Nadu government and now by the Puducherry government. After Tamil Nadu enhanced bus rates, people going to Chennai adjusted their travel timings wherever possible to accommodate the three trains: one Express and two passenger trains. The bus fare to Chennai is over Rs 100, while it is Rs 54 for the Express train and Rs 28 for for passenger trains. The  Puducherry-Chennai Express at 5.30 a.m is packed with IT and engineering professionals working in Chennai - almost 70 per cent of passengers are professionals.After the hike in fares in Puducherry, more and more people are taking the train to Villupuram. The fare is only Rs 6 by train to Villupuram, while by bus it is Rs 18 (Madagadipet route) and `22 (Thirukanur route). Five trains operate daily to Villupuram. “Daily-wage earners, agricultural labourers, and other professionals who come from Villipuram  wait at even smaller stations like Pallineriyanoor to take the train,” says A V Veeraghavan of Congress media cell, who has demanded a roll-back of the bus-fare hike.“There is heavy rush in the trains, and with Pongal, it is still more,” says  S Manirajan,  Station Manager, Puducherry Railway Station. This is is also indicated by the fact that 23,763 passengers have travelled by train from Puducherry as compared to 17,784 passengers who travelled by train from January 1-15. The numbers are significant as people travelling with reservation has gone up only marginally from 6,798 in 2011 to 7,526 in 2012.