Central Railway

Untitled Carousel Central Railway to operate first AC local on Thane- Vashi-Panvel Trans-Harbour route from January 31 Central Railway’s (CR) first air-conditioned (AC) local will have its inaugural run on Thursday and regular operations will begin from January 31.

AC local train

Crowd on the platform on the first day of the Ac local on trans-harbour line. Photo: Twitter

Trans Harbour Line Delay & AC Local Too! 10.40 late near to half an hour. Crowd waiting for AC & Non AC local Tha… https://t.co/OBOO4jKR0Y — Keshav Nadar (@thambikeshav) 1580451137000

Thane-Nerul

Thane-Panvel

Thane-Vashi

The Vashi-Panvel Trans-Harbour AC local arrives at Kharghar Station 00:49

The Trans-Harbour line on Friday witnessed a stampede-like situation as hundreds of commuters rushed to board the first air-conditioned local on's suburban network.The AC local was flagged-off by the Minister of State for Railways Suresh Angadi on Thursday from the control room of Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj Terminus.However, on the first day, the AC local services seem to have collapsed, affecting the schedule of the normal local trains as the crowd swelled on platforms at various stations.According to some commuters, the doors of the train did not shut in time due to the crowd in the compartment.Several general compartment ticket holders too boarded the AC local, upset that Central Railway was hell-bent on introducing anwhen there weren't enough regular train services for commuters.Though the railway administration had deployed 10 ticket collectors (TCs) and 10 security personnel to stop general class ticket holders from boarding the AC train, the crowd kept swelling with the non-AC ticket holders threatening to agitate."First day of AC local train on Harbour and Trans harbour route causes train services to go off schedule. When the train arrived, all regular passengers got on the train as well. Bad management of new facilities by the @Central_Railway," said a Twitter user identified as Vicky Fernandes.Another Twitter user appreciated the service of the new train but asked why regular train services were being cancelled, which were already paralysed. Central Railway has to cancel 16 trains to accommodate the AC local train.The trains on the Trans-Harbour line are now running at least 30 minutes behind schedule.The AC local will run 16 services betweenandstationsAmong its many features, the AC local has a GPS-based information system for passengers with intercom facility, two-sided displays and two double-sided displays in each coach, the official said.For the safety of passengers, the train has an automatic door closure system, an alarm system for emergencies, and a talk-back facility for communication between passengers and train crew.