Kochi: Peak-hour passenger train commuters here are on a black-ribbon protest against frequent delays.
“The late running of the trains causes difficulty to office-goers and women. So the commuters of the Ernakulam–Shoranur began a five-day protest by wearing black ribbons on Friday,” Edappally Railways Passenger Association coordinator R. D. Manikandan said.
The association has threatened to intensify the stir adopting more active methods if the railway authorities failed to take action in ten days.
“We will form a human chain at important stations like Ernakulam South, Ernakulam Town and Thrissur,” he said.
Recently, the railways conducted a survey among the commuters and changed the schedule of the passenger train following widespread complaints late running.
“The train schedule was changed so that it keeps time. Now the train leaves Ernakulam South by 5.40 pm instead of 6.05 pm but it continues to run late causing inconvenience to women as it gets very late for them to reach home,” said Parvathy Rajeev, a native of Athirapally who works in the city.
Hundreds of office-goers, a majority of them women, travel by the train halted at several stations for longhaul and important trains like Kannur-bound Janshatabdi to overtake.
