Pune railway station to get five escalators by February 2019

All the escalators will be connected to the new foot over bridge constructed by the railways in August this year, says official

Manoj Jhawar, public relations officer (PRO), central railways, Pune division said, “We began constructing the foundation for the five escalators in November. While the first four escalators will become operational in January, the last will start operating in the month of February.”

Work on installing an escalator near the newly constructed foot over bridge is underway. (Photo by Ravindra Joshi/HT PHOTO)

According to Jhawar, all the escalators will be connected to the new Foot over bridge (FOB) constructed by the railways in August this year.

He said, “Four escalators (two for going up and two for going down) are built at the entry and exit points. While two will be at the main entry of the station towards the reservation counter, two will be at the backside of the station towards the DRM office. The fifth escalator will connect platform number two and three to the new FOB constructed.”

All the five escalators are being built by the Central railways, Pune division at the cost of Rs 5 crore, said Jawar adding that considering the amount of the passenger flow at the Pune railway station, the escalators will certainly increase the convenience to the passengers.

Currently, there is only one operational escalator near the main entry of the station.

Vanita Jharkhanndi, a senior citizen said, “It is good that new escalators are coming up for the passengers. However, the authorities also should ensure that the escalators remain operational. Many times the only escalator at the Pune station near platform one is not operational which causes inconvenience to us.”