VISAKHAPATNAM: There is utter chaos among passengers travelling to and from Visakhapatnam railway station as trains continue to be delayed for hours together.

Railway officials are tight-lipped about the actual cause of delays and brush it aside saying that such problems are normal in the initiation of major works.

Thanks to the indifference of the officials, speculations are rife that the new Route Relay Interlocking (RRI) system, which was commissioned on November 14, has developed major problems and needs to be overhauled. Officials admit it will take at least a month to overcome the teething problems.

Contrary to expectations, the inordinate detention of trains between Duvvada and Visakhapatnam stations has only increased after the introduction of the new system. Though teething problems cannot be ruled out, they generally settle down in a few days.

Design defects in shunting system and improper planning are said to be the causes for the delays overshooting the time limit. An official is overheard saying that he will require a minimum of one month to correct the defects.

The delays are also due to inability of the operating staff to get accustomed to the new system. They have been using the manual system for decades and are not comfortable in giving signals through panel controls, sources say.

The number of signals, which is only 31 in the past, has increased to 67 following introduction of the new system.

Employee flexibility

"The new state-of-the-art computer-controlled system rules out the possibility of collision while allowing flexibility in the movement of trains. However, the flexibility of the employees, who were earlier operating the controls manually, has been curtailed.

In place of three employees only one person is needed to control the panel," sources add.

There is a lot of shunting activity at the Visakhapatnam station.

This is because the locomotive of the incoming through train has to be detached and again attached to the same train at the opposite end.

Meanwhile, passenger trains scheduled to originate and terminate at Visakhapatnam will continue to be short-terminated at Duvvada till the problems are overcome.

Printer friendly page  
Send this article to Friends by E-Mail