New train service cuts Delhi-Meerut ride time

Ghaziabad: Much to the relief of thousands of commuters from Meerut and Muradnagar, a Mainline Electrified Multiple Unit (MEMU) suburban train began operation from Anand Vihar to Meerut on Saturday. This became possible after the Ghaziabad-Meerut-Saharanpur rail route was fully electrified and commissioned after an inspection and authorisation by the commissioner of railway safety on March 18.On Saturday, a 12-bogey MEMU train was flagged off from Meerut, which will cover the distance to Delhi in two hours flat, reducing travel time of daily commuters by at least half an hour.”We were completely dependent on buses — either state roadways or private — which were neither comfortable nor convenient. The MEMU train will solve our daily commuting woes,” said Rohit Tyagi, who works in a call centre in Noida and commutes from Meerut daily.

The first MEMU service flagged off from Meerut on Saturday stops at nine stations between Anand Vihar and Meerut City.Another daily commuter Atul Srivastav said, “It’s good the EMU service has begun, though the present timetable is not of much help for me. The train departs from Meerut at 2.15 pm. An office goer needs to reach office by 10-11 am.” There are three trains, from Kalka and Rishikesh, available during morning hours, but being long distance, daily commuters find few seats on them.A rough estimate shows around 25,000-35,000 daily passengers commute to Delhi from Meerut, Modinagar and other stations every day for work.