The Central Railway is actively exploring options to enhance the frequency of Pune-Lonavala local trains, particularly during the three-hour time gap when services are suspended due to corridor blocks.
The local train service between Pune Railway Station and Lonavala is temporarily halted every day from 11:15am to 3pm, while the reverse route, from Lonavala to Pune, is affected between 10am and 2:50pm. This gap has created difficulties for many commuters travelling between Pune and Lonavala, forcing them to rely on road transportation. This not only elongates travel time but also results in increased expenses.
A significant number of students, whose college schedules begin in the early morning and end in the afternoon, also grapple with this situation. After concluding their classes, they are left waiting for more than 2 to 3 hours for the local trains to resume, enabling them to reach their homes. While daily commuters have previously submitted requests to initiate afternoon local train services to alleviate these challenges, officials awaited approval from the Mumbai headquarters.
However, recent updates from headquarters confirm that solutions are actively being devised, including the possibility of allowing some local trains to operate during the corridor gap. These initiative aims to ensure that people no longer experience such inconveniences during their daily commutes.
