Mumbai: It was a pleasant surprise to find the train compartments virtually empty on one’s commute to work on Friday afternoon. At Thane, fast trains from CSMT had been diverted to platform 2. However, fast trains towards CSMT were arriving on platform 6 as usual.
Despite the ongoing work, disruption to passengers was minimal probably because there were fewer people travelling. Among those who shared my journey were three nurses on their way to work, a young family taking their child for medical treatment, and a woman who had to be with her ailing mother in south Mumbai. Otherwise, the usual gaggle of people was missing; apparently, the government’s appeal to avoid unnecessary travel was being heeded.
Mumbaikars Share Their Views On Finding Trains Empty
Our colleague, General Manager Devendra Sawant, said that outside Byculla station the additional BEST buses plying to help commuters were running smoothly, and the arrangements were made without disruption.
One senior citizen said he was going to work only because it was his last day before he retired, and his colleagues had organised lunch for him. For him, it was nice to find the trains empty.
Local trains were running late, however, most commuters were anticipating this. Sawant said that along with other commuters, he had planned for this. However, apart from this, there was no extreme chaos as one might have expected
