Commuters residing beyond city suburbs want eight-car MEMU to be replaced with 12-car rakes

Commuters arriving in the city from as far away as Tiruttani on the west and Villupuram on the south want the Southern Railway to replace eight-car and 10-car mainline electrical multiple unit (MEMU) trains with at least 12-car MEMUs.

At a time when the Indian Railways has sleek and sophisticated Vande Bharat trains, thousands of commuters, including traders, visiting the city from far off places are forced to travel in the cramped and congested MEMU trains. The MEMUs are operated on the fast line on which mail and express trains are normally operated.

The MEMU services are intercity trains provided with toilets for longer journeys and are operated till Villupuram on the south side, Tiruttani and also Tirupati on the west side, and Sullurpetta in the North.

While the suburban train services have been converted to 12-car rakes on all the three sections in the city, the operation of eight-car rakes is causing severe inconvenience to public due to over-crowding in these trains.

The MEMU train is smaller than the broad-gauge suburban trains with poor ventilation and narrow access for the commuters.

J. Ranganathan, secretary of Kanchipuram-Chennai Rail Commuters Association, said that the train network is the economical transport option for thousands of commuters residing beyond city limits and these commuters deserve a better service. He said the eight-car MEMU could be shifted for operating shuttle services from Arakkonam to Chengalpattu via Kancheepuram as there were limited services on this stretch and the stations could also accommodate the MEMU.

A loco pilot explained that the operation of EMUs was not feasible beyond the suburban railway line, as the platform infrastructure cannot accommodate EMUs. However, the MEMU trains had been designed to be suitable for the platforms of stations beyond the suburban line, and since they have steps, commuters can get down to the platform without much hardship. While many MEMU trains have been converted to 12-car rakes, eight-car rakes are still operated, he said.

A senior official of Southern Railway said a total of 60 MEMU train services were being operated in all sections of Chennai Division. On replacing the eight-car MEMU, the official said the decision would be taken based on the life cycle of MEMU.