Question : LATE RUNNING OF TRAINS

(a) the total number of trains running late and subsequently cancelled in the country due to fog, bad weather and other reasons from the month of September 2010 to January 2011, zone-wise;

(b) the total loss incurred by the Railways due to the late running and cancellation of trains in the country, zone-wise;

(c) the steps being taken by the Railways to prevent late running of trains and develop mechanism/device to prevent fog related accident during winter season; and

(d) the amount incurred by the Railways in this regard during the period?

MINISTER OF STATE IN THE MINISTRY OF RAILWAYS (SHRI K.H. MUNIYAPPA)

(a) 756 Mail/Express trains ran late and were subsequently cancelled in the country due to fog, bad weather and other reasons from September 2010 to January 2011. The zone-wise details are at Appendix.

(b) The data of loss due to late running of trains or their cancellation is not maintained train wise.

(c) & (d) Railways have provided LED signal at 4273 stations on Indian Railways to improve visibility during fog at the cost of Rs. 10 lakh per station. The automatic signals on fog affected busy sections of Northern region of Indian Railways i.e. Kanpur-Aligarh and Mathura-Ballabhgarh were converted to semi automatic during fog period so as to improve their transit time and also prevent accidents. Besides, a number of trains were cancelled in advance to create clear path for all other trains and the same was announced 3 months in advance to avoid any inconvenience to travelling passengers.