With new escalators being installed, accessibility will become easier for senior citizens, pregnant women and those with disabilities.
Regular commuter of the Mumbai trains? Well, if you are among the lakhs who traverse the railway stations in the city, we have some good news for you – it’s going to get much easier getting around the stations soon.
It’s been announced that there will be over 100 escalators across suburban railway stations in Mumbai. An initiative by Central Railways (CR) and the Western Railways (WR), all of the escalators are most likely to become functional by 2018.
Currently, there are 41 escalators at the stations – 15 escalators under Central Railways and 26 under Western Railways.
MR @sureshpprabhu intiative & @PiyushGoyal directions to provide 25 escalators in CR Mumbai suburban stations under CSR of PSUs pic.twitter.com/f9y0DIYIvx
— Central Railway (@Central_Railway) April 6, 2017
More escalators will be a respite to many of the commuters, especially senior citizens, pregnant women and those with movement disabilities and injuries, to reach the right platforms with greater ease.
About 30 of these escalators will be funded by Western Coalfields Limited (WCFL) as part of their Corporate Social Responsibility programme. The organisation has pledged ₹30 crore towards this endeavor.
Speaking to the Times of India, Narendra Patil, chief public relations officer of the Central Railways, provided further details, noting, “The Rs 30 crore will be utilised to install 30 more escalators — 25 on CR and five on WR stations — in 2017-18. The escalators will bring a great relief to commuters, especially senior citizens. With Western Coalfields sanctioning another 25 escalators on 19 stations, the total number of escalators on CR stations will touch 75.”
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CR will be installing 19 escalators and the Mumbai Railway Vikas Corporation (MRVC) will install eight.
Some of the stations that will soon boast brand new escalators are CST, Matunga, Parel, Mulund, Sion, Tilak Nagar, Kasara, Chembur, Byculla, Karjat and more.
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