Dasara: trains, buses jam-packed

Festive rush was witnessed at railway station and RTC bus complex here on Saturday, as a large number of people thronged to reach home for Dasara. People were seen making a beeline for the buses and trains, since Friday late night.

Special trains which are being run by railway officials and buses by the SRTC seemed to fall short, as trains towards Vijayawada, Secunderabad, Bhubaneswar and Howrah are packed. Especially, Janmabhoomi Express, which runs between Visakhapatnam and Hyderabad, Visakhapatnam-Guntur Simhadri, Visakhapatnam-Vijayawada Ratnachal Express, Howrah -Yeshwantpur Superfast Express and other trains like Howrah Mail, Prasanthi Express, were overcrowded in both the directions.

The railway officials deployed security personnel to ensure unreserved ticket holders board only general compartments. Several passengers travelling in Bengaluru-Bhubaneswar Prasanthi Express were seen complaining about passengers with general tickets entering reserved coaches on Saturday afternoon. All the platforms were seen packed with passengers throughout the day.

Situation was not at all different at Dwaraka Bus Complex on Saturday. Buses towards Ichchapuram, Palasa, Srikakulam, Vizianagaram, Rajamahendravaram, Amalapuram, Kakinada and Vijayawada had a huge demand.

A large number of students, especially those of private Intermediate residential colleges, who were given holidays from Saturday, reached bus station in the morning. The non-stop buses ticket counters had lengthy queue lines which frustrated passengers. As soon as any bus arrived, passengers fought for seats inconveniencing women and children.

“Many buses do not have reservation facilities. This is a problem for women. Holding children with us, we cannot fight for seats when a bus arrives. Most of the men are placing bags from windows. The conductors should block several seats for women,” said L. Rani, a homemaker who was waiting for her bus to Tekkali, on Saturday afternoon. A senior RTC official said that about about 480 additional buses (to and fro) are being run from Visakhapatnam to other cities from October 4 to 13.

He said that they have increased the number of buses compared to last year. Keeping a watch on the demand, we may increase the number of buses in the coming days, he said.

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