CALL FOR ACTION: Commuters want Southern Railway to take steps for reducing the waiting time at the ticket counters in many stations on Chennai Beach-Tambaram EMU section. A scene at the ticket counter in Chromepet railway station on Monday. — Photo: A. Muralitharan

TAMBARAM: The shortage of ticket counters and personnel at some railway stations on the Chennai Beach and Tambaram suburban section is causing severe inconvenience to commuters.

The problem is compounded during the peak hour on Monday mornings. In Chromepet, the queue of commuters waiting to purchase a ticket was so long that it spilled on to Grand Southern Trunk Road.

After gauge conversion, the Southern Railway constructed the elevated ticket counter on the foot over bridge. Though it helped in easing the crowd at the platform where the ticket counter originally functioned, the elevated facility has been posing a hindrance to pedestrians using the foot over bridge to reach Chromepet and Hasthinapuram sides.

Long wait

On Monday morning, the commuters were forced to miss at least three electric trains towards Chennai Beach as the wait extended beyond twenty minutes.

Members of the Chromepet Rail Users' Forum urged senior officials of the Southern Railway to visit Chromepet and other suburban railway stations to understand the plight of commuters, particularly senior citizens.

At present, there are three counters — two for suburban tickets and another for season tickets. The Forum's members said there should be three counters dedicated to sell only suburban tickets, at least during peak hours.

Enquiries with Southern Railway revealed that it was not possible to start additional counters or deploy personnel at the moment.

The problem, according to the Forum members, was not restricted only to Chromepet but applied to Tambaram as well where the wait time extended to more than half-an-hour.

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