Latest News | Damage to British-era Bridge Forces Southern Railway to Cancel Trains

Chennai, Dec 24 (PTI): The structural damage to the British-era bridge in the Arakkonam-Katpadi section, due to the recent cyclones in the Bay of Bengal that hit Tamil Nadu in November and resultant floods which caused havoc to the structure necessitated the Southern Railway to divert 12 trains in the route, the Southern Railway said on Friday.

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Announcing the diversion of trains due to temporary suspension of traffic on Bridge no. 299 between Mukundarayapuram and Tiruvalam stations in Arakkonam-Katpadi section of the Chennai division, the Southern Railway urged the people to plan their travel in view of the changes made in the pattern of express train services on December 25 and 26, respectively.

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Rail traffic on the bridge built in 1865 across Ponnai River was suspended on December 23 after a crack was noticed in one of the pillars. "Rail traffic was suspended on the downline in Arakkonam-Katpadi section. While some trains passing through the section were fully cancelled, few other trains were either short terminated, diverted or regulated and handled in single line,” a release from the Chennai division said on Friday.

The Southern Railway claimed that the recent cyclones in the Bay of Bengal which hit Tamil Nadu in November and the resultant floods caused havoc to the bridge damaging its structure.

"The Chennai Division which accords paramount importance to the safety of train operations and passenger safety, is taking concerted efforts to restore Bridge no. 299 and resume normal traffic in Arakkonam - Katpadi section," the release said.

A technical expert team from the structural Engineering Research Centre (SERC-CSIR) along with Ganesh, divisional railway manager, Chennai, and engineering officials inspected the bridge today.

All out efforts are being taken to restore the bridge at the earliest by duly rectifying the structural damage and accommodating trains on both the up and down lines with speed restrictions, the release further said.

Accordingly, Train No. 13351 Dhanbad – Alappuzha Express, Train No. 13352 Alappuzha – Dhanbad Express, Train No. 22646 Kochuveli – Indore Superfast Express, Train No.12508 Silchar – Thiruvananthapuram Central Express, Train No.12540 Lucknow –Yesvantpur Express, Train No.22669 Ernakulam – Patna Superfast Express, Train No. 12551 Yesvantpur – Kamakhya AC Superfast Express, Train No. 22605 Purulia – Villupuram Bi-Weekly Superfast Express, Train No. 22606 Villupuram – Purulia Bi-Weekly Superfast Express, Train No. 12688 Chandigarh – Madurai Express, Train No. 22620 Tirunelveli – Bilaspur Superfast Express and Train No. 18568 Kollam – Visakhapatnam, have been diverted.

(The above story is verified and authored by Press Trust of India (PTI) staff. PTI, India’s premier news agency, employs more than 400 journalists and 500 stringers to cover almost every district and small town in India.. The views appearing in the above post do not reflect the opinions of LatestLY)