CHENNAI: After a gap of nearly six months, train services from Chennai to Kerala and Karnataka are set to resume on Sunday.
With the railway board approving the request, Southern Railway is introducing three daily reserved special trains to Thiruvananthapuram, Mangaluru and Mysuru from Chennai.
The maiden run of special trains on the Chennai-Thiruvananthapuram route will commence on September 27 and on the Chennai-Mangaluru route on September 28. The date of resumption for trains to Mysuru will be notified later, said Southern Railway in a statement.
The MGR Chennai Central–Thiruvananthapuram reserved special train will leave Chennai at 7.45 pm and reach Thiruvananthapuram Central at 11.45 am next day. Similarly, on the return journey, the train will start at Thiruvananthapuram Central at 3 pm and reach Chennai at 7.40 am the next day.
The MGR Chennai Central–Mangaluru special train will leave Chennai at 8.10 pm and reach Mangaluru at 12.10 pm the next day. On the return journey, the train will start Mangaluru at 1.30 pm and reach Chennai at 5.35 am on the next day.
The move is expected to provide huge relief to rail passengers as Chennai–Thiruvananthapuram is one of the most patronised routes of Southern Railway.
As the state government relaxed the lockdown norms, 13 pairs of special trains were operated from September 7 within the state. The railways is yet to take any decision on resuming suburban and unreserved passenger trains.
“Like other reserved specials, only confirmed ticket holders will be allowed to travel in the trains. Passengers should reach stations 90 minutes before departure of the trains,” added a statement fromthe railways.
The reservation for special trains will be opened shortly.