In the wake of constant delays in the suburban rail network of Mumbai local trains, MLC Satyajeet Tambe has demanded urgent intervention of Union Railway Minister Ashwini Vaishnav and sought an integrated transport policy to solve the 'local conundrum'.
"The service of suburban Railway, which is considered as the lifeline of Mumbai, has been delayed every day for the last several months. Local trains on the Central Railway are always running 15-20 minutes late. Long distance trains are also running two-three hours behind schedule. This is causing hardship to lakhs of commuters living in the Mumbai Metropolitan Region. An integrated transport policy is the need of the hour," Tambe said.
Seeking the railway minister's attention and intervention, Tambe said, "There is a need for the Ministry of Railways and the Central Government to come up with an integrated transport strategy for the people living in the Mumbai Metropolitan Region. It should also be investigated how jobs can be created near their city for those rushing to Mumbai for employment. Also, multimodal corridors, other means of public transport and their integration with suburban rail need to be done on a war footing basis."
Tambe has constantly raised issues concerning the infrastructure model of Maharashtra, be it the traffic snarl on the Mumbai-Nashik route, or the safety and security issues on the Samruddhi Mahamarg.
Tambe said lives of Mumbaikars depend on the schedule of local trains. "When trains start running late, then the train of lives of Mumbaikars also derail. Many reach offices late at least twice a week. I have also seen people risking their lives and walk on tracks when trains halt for a long time just to meet the office hours. Such feeling among Mumbaikars should change," Tambe stated.
