Battery cars to ferry passengers in Visakhapatnam

Visakhapatnam: Passengers scurrying to reach platforms at the last minute can now heave a sigh of relief as battery operated vehicles will soon be made available at the Visakhapatnam Railway station for their benefit.

The East Coast Railway is readying two battery operated 4-wheelers for the passengers to switch between platforms and help them board train in time. One can book the vehicle online or at the station as a website would be launched for the purpose with toll-free numbers being facilitated to avail the service that comes at a nominal cost.

With Marwari Yuva Munch is already running two cars to lend support to senior citizens, differently-abled persons and patients free of cost from 5 am to 10:30 pm, the new cars will be made available for all, 24X7 on payment of Rs 45 a passenger.

Apart from a driver, the battery-operated car can accommodate four persons to ferry them across eight platforms at the station. "A minimum 10 to 15 minutes of time can be saved while accessing platforms through the vehicle as a majority of passengers rush to the station in the last minute.

Also, there is a minimal chance of missing the train, especially when one is hard-pressed for time," says a railway official. Currently, the new facility has been outsourced to an external agency on a five-year lease.