Tourism in Matheran is all set to be revived. Central Railway (CR) has decided to increase toy train services to eight services a day starting July 7. On weekends, it will be increased to 12 services per day.
The COVID-19 pandemic hit the tourism industry hard. Being a hill station, Matheran witnessed protests urging the state government to open it for tourism. “The situation is slowly reviving. This weekend, there was a considerable footfall in Matheran. We are glad that the CR has increased the toy train services,” said Sunil Shinde, resident and secretary of Shramik Rickshaw Sanstha.
From July 7, CR authorities started 4 Up and 4 Down (a total of 8 shuttle services) toy train services on weekdays on the Matheran-Aman Lodge narrow gauge section. Also, 6 Up and 6 Down (a total of 12 shuttle services) will be operational on weekends. The services will start from 9.30am from Matheran and 9.55am from Aman Lodge on weekdays and from 8.15am and 8.40am, respectively, on weekends.
The local residents claim that 95 per cent of the locals have been vaccinated and so tourists should be allowed.
