Passengers resent trains running late

Nagpur: With ongoing peak travel and summer season, passengers have resented trains not running on schedule causing inconvenience.“Delayed trains have put a question mark on our travel plans. It has become a national problem forcing us to think whether to go ahead with the vacation or not,” said an aggrieved Sanjay Dhote.The messed-up schedule is making people regret their decision to travel by train.On Wednesday, more than seven trains were running 3-7 hours late. The 12130 Azad Hind Express was running 11 hours late. Vijay Dhawle, member of Zonal Railways Users’ Consultative Committee, blamed the delay on the blocking of routes for maintenance. “We will write to the Railway Board,” he said.Basant Shukla, general secretary, Bharatiya Yatri Kendra (BYK), stated that despite the Railway Board’s direction to maintain punctuality, trains never arrive on time. “This is because goods trains are being given preference over passenger trains,” he said.Sneha Ranade, a passenger traveling by Howrah-Mumbai Duronto to join her new job in Mumbai, was left in the lurch as the train was running more than six hours late.“As the train kept on delaying, I had to cancel the ticket and book an expensive flight ticket at the last moment,” Ranade said. tnn(Reporting by Vasudha Ranade)