The era of endlessly waiting for your train ticket to be confirmed may soon be a thing of the past. Indian Railways is set to revolutionize the ticket booking process with a new initiative aimed at significantly reducing the gap between supply and demand, ensuring confirmed tickets for more passengers.
Confirmed Tickets for All: The New Initiative
According to a report from Dainik Bhaskar, the Indian Railways plans to launch a ‘Super App’ in December, which will be key to this transformative initiative. The app aims to allot confirmed tickets to at least 90% of users booking their tickets. This ambitious move is expected to start with a pilot phase, initially focusing on five select train routes within a 500 km radius.
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How It Works
The process is designed to ensure confirmed tickets for passengers by running additional trains on popular routes. Here’s a detailed breakdown:
- Additional Trains: On select tracks, where demand is high, an additional train will run at an interval of one hour after the initial train. This additional train will cater to those on the waiting list of the first train.
- Coach Allocation: The additional train’s coaches will be allocated based on the category of waiting tickets. For instance, if there are more sleeper class waiting tickets, the train will have more sleeper coaches. This ensures that the maximum number of passengers get confirmed tickets in their preferred class.
- Flexible Upgrades: Passengers with sleeper class tickets may be upgraded to AC coaches if there are more AC coaches available. Importantly, this upgrade will not require passengers to buy a separate ticket or pay an additional fee.
The Role of the ‘Super App’
The Indian Railways ‘Super App’ will be central to this initiative. The app will provide detailed information on ticket availability, alternative train schedules, and coach allocations. This will make the booking process more transparent and user-friendly.
Future Prospects
Railway officials have stated that this initiative aims to eliminate waiting lists entirely. By using technology and additional resources efficiently, the Indian Railways is gearing up to meet the high demand for train travel across the country. Deliberations are ongoing to identify the specific routes for the pilot phase.