The interminable hold-up of trains at the Chingavanam, Kottayam and Ettumanur stations will soon be a thing of past with the railway authorities set to open a second track along the 17-km stretch between Chingavanam and Ettumanur.
Ending a long wait lasting over a decade, the track-doubling work along the route is slated to be completed by March last week. The opening of the new line is expected to ensure a smooth passage of trains along the busy stretch between Kayamkulam and Ernakulam via Kottayam, saving a running time of up to 15 minutes.
According to Thomas Chazhikadan, MP, along with the track-doubling work, construction of a second entry to the Kottayam railway station will be completed by March. The acquisition of the remaining land required for the completion of track-doubling at Muttambalam is in the final stages.
“The Deputy Collector (LA) will prepare a detailed valuation statement and hand over the land value to the remaining landowners immediately,” said Mr. Chazhikadan.
The second entry to the Kottayam railway station, meanwhile, is expected to be commissioned immediately after an inspection by the Commissioner of Railway Safety (CRS). Renovation work of the existing railway station, besides the installation of two lifts and replacement of the escalator, is progressing as scheduled.
As many as seven platforms will be set up at the station, including a 327-m platform for MEMU trains to Ernakulam and another for goods trains.
Railway officials said the completion of works on the second track will be followed by the statutory inspection and speed trail of the tracks by the CRS, mostly by the first week of April. An authorisation from the CRS will be followed by signaling and related works, and the track will be set for commissioning on a date to be decided by the Railway Board.
While the maximum constructed train speed of the section will be 110 km per hour, the department expects the CRS to approve a maximum operational speed of up to 90 km per hour. “The sectional speed could be raised at a later stage based on the annual track report by the CRS and by evaluating the weather conditions,” pointed out an official.
With this, track-doubling will be completed in the entire 115-km-long Ernakulam-Kottayam-Kayamkulam section, which is also crucial in introducing new trains along the route.
