Commuters suffer awaiting upgrades

Chennai: For many years now, passengers have been struggling with inadequate facilities at Tambaram railway station, especially on platforms 9 and 10. During peak hours, heavy crowding and absence of escalators force commuters to rely on staircases, often leading to stampede-like situations.The station has emerged as a key transit point for south-bound trains, as Egmore railway station is still under redevelopment."My grandparents arrived from Trichy last Saturday and got down at platform 10. They could not climb the stairs and did not know where to exit from the station. They waited for nearly an hour until I reached the station," said R Mohan Raj of East Tambaram."The railways should at least introduce more buggy facilities to drop passengers carrying heavy baggage. Without this, even if passengers avoid stairs, they are forced to walk at least 500meters to access the only lift," said M Rathinam, a regular commuter.The station may soon get relief, as Railways has floated two tenders worth over 15 crore to upgrade infrastructure and passenger facilities at the busy terminal. The work, expected to be completed in 12 months, includes redevelopment of circulating areas, relaying of roads, improved platform shelters, installation of escalators and lifts, and construction of new waiting halls.Around 100meters of approach roads will be laid at a cost of 2.88 crore. Congestion near foot overbridges will also be reduced by redesigning circulating areas on both east and west sides, with new flooring and railings. Roofing across the station will be upgraded, with nearly 9,500sqm of sheets and 1,800sqm of gutters to be replaced, along with drainage improvements and waterproofing.Platforms five and six will get new shelters, while a new waiting hall for platforms seven and eight will be built at a cost of 45 lakh. Additionally, two escalators will be installed on the east side foot overbridge, and platforms 5-6, 7-8 and 9-10 will be extended to accommodate lifts.Similarly, a 2.5 crore tender has been issued for an integrated passenger information system. The system will include digital train display boards, 52 coach guidance systems and 10 large screens across the station. Announcements will be upgraded to a network-based, multilingual system supported by over 100 speakers across platforms and foot overbridges.
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