Govt to improve train services

By Gamini Warushamana

The Ministry of Transport and the Sri Lanka Railway (CGR) has launched a medium- term development program from 2012-2015 to improve the railway service to meet the needs of the economy, said the General Manager, CGR, B.A.P. Ariyaratne.

Pix: Susantha Wijegunasekera

"In the CGR we have a general development plan with an annual budget including plans to maintain and upgrade the fleet of trains, railway lines and the signal system.

However, these are not in a combined overall plan and under this medium-term plan we have combined them considering all aspects of the service and there are several new projects. We have already implemented some of the proposals in the program," he said.

Under this medium-term plan, the signal system, tracks and fleet will be improved. The present signal system on the main track is over 50-years-old and causes problems in the smooth functioning of the train service. He attributed train delays due to the aged signal systems as being the main reason for train delays.

Construction of another track in the Southern railway line and construction of the third track between Colombo and Panadura is another proposal under this program. The limitation of the track creates heavy traffic congestion which in turn contributes to train delays.

For instance there are seven trains within 35 minutes in the mornings from Panadura to Colombo or a train every five minutes. Also the third track on the upcountry railway line which now runs up to Ragama will be extended to Polgahawela.

The development of the Kelani Valley railway line cannot be started due to unauthorised construction along the line. There are 1,180 families living in lands belonging to the CGR in this area and due to this, even running trains on this line is difficult today. Under the medium-term development plan it is proposed to evacuate these families by providing them alternative houses and developing the Kelani Valley line with two tracks up to Padukka. Investment for this project is expected from a Chinese government institution.

Transport minister Kumara Welgama and General Manager, CGR, B.A.P. Ariyaratne.

The CGR celebrates 150 years in 2014 and parallel to this a railway museum will be set up in Kadugannawa. A credit line from the Chinese government is expected to complete the railway museum.

Ariyaratne said that the introduction of a convenient ticketing system is another proposal in the medium-term development program. The existing ticketing system is costly and inefficient is the view of passengers and the management. Counting revenue and accounting is difficult with this manual system and the CGR loses millions in revenue as a result. This year the CGR has earned over Rs. 9 m in fines from fair dodgers.

Improving facilities at railway stations is another aspect of the development program. At present, most of railway stations are in a bad state and even basic facilities are not available for passengers.

Meanwhile, since the length and height of platforms in some stations are not sufficient to accommodate the new trains, reconstruction work of the platforms has already begun.

The development plan will also focus on increasing revenue by efficient rent collection from CGR-owned lands and buildings that have been rented out and by increasing cargo transportation. Last year, the rent income of the CGR doubled with the introduction of an efficient collection system and expanding coverage. There are a large number of squatters on CGR land who do not pay any rent.

"With the addition of new power- sets we now have locomotives for cargo trains and we will start container transportation," Ariyaratne said.

New rail tracks

In addition to reconstruction of the Northern railway line, the Nanuoya-Nuwara Eliya-Udupussellawa line, abandoned 40 years ago, will be developed to cater to the increasing demand with the boom in the tourism sector.

The CGR continues to run at a loss and the revenue is sufficient to cover half of its recurrent expenditure. The recurrent expenditure of the CGR is between Rs.9,000-10,0000 m but the revenue is between Rs. 4,500-4,700 m.

Although revenue is increasing, the profit margin has further reduced with the diesel price increase. Around 15 percent of the losses is due to tickets provided to schoolchildren and government sector workers at concessionary rates.

The quality of train services has improved significantly. Over $ 172 m has been invested in 33 new power sets.

New value added services such as luxury service compartments, online ticket booking facilities, new office trains, increased seating capacity in the second class have also improved the quality of the train service, he said.