Pune locals to wait for Mumbai to resume train services

PUNE: While Mumbai gears up to resume local train services following chief minister Uddhav Thackeray’s announcement that persons fully vaccinated against Covid-19 can return to train travel, residents of Pune will have to wait till Mumbai recommences train services

PUNE: While Mumbai gears up to resume local train services following chief minister Uddhav Thackeray’s announcement that persons fully vaccinated against Covid-19 can return to train travel, residents of Pune will have to wait till Mumbai recommences train services. The same applies to those who commute regularly between Pune and Lonavala and Daund junction.

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A K Singh, senior public relations officer, central railway, said, “Let Mumbai restart its local train services and see how the protocols laid down by the state Government work from August 15. We will wait to see the response and then take a call after the government gives us the nod.”

Thackeray had announced that fully vaccinated commuters who had completed the 14-day period after their second dose of the covid-19 vaccine would be able to procure special railway passes on a specially-created application (app) on their smartphones.

Manoj Jhawar, Pune public relations officer, central railway, further said, “Ever since Mumbai announced resuming local train services for fully vaccinated commuters, there is a lot of speculation from around 4,000 daily commuters to and from Mumbai and Daund. But till the state government takes a call, we cannot do anything about it. During the coronavirus pandemic, only eight trains were allowed between Pune and Lonavala, that too for essential services, owing to Covid restrictions.”

New coach for DQ on Independence Day

On the occasion of Independence Day on August 15, a new coach will be added to the iconic train, the Mumbai-Pune Deccan Queen. Responding to commuters’ suggestions, the central railway has fitted an end coach – a wide window dome one – to the Pune end of the train for an unrestricted view of the ghats.

The Deccan Queen is the second train on the central railway to get a vista dome coach with the first being the Deccan Express which has seen a very good response from commuters. The 34-seater fully air-conditioned vista dome coach has a large trailing window in the rear, huge side windows for panoramic views, a top made of see-through glass, and 180 degree swivel chairs for an unparalleled viewing experience. A one-way reserved ticket in this coach costs Rs915. Ever since booking has begun on August 8, the coach is almost always full and on the train’s return journey from Pune to Mumbai on August 16, it has a waiting list.