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Indian railways is really good at managing much higher traffic at lower number of platforms and tracks in general. New infra upgrades are much slow and expensiv

Indian railways is really good at managing much higher traffic at lower number of platforms and tracks in general. New infra upgrades are much slow and expensive. So at a majority of high traffic stations, track sections IR has to do a really tight exercise of managing schedules and maintenance. They also have recently improved on time performance. It is not Japan like or anything, but it is getting better.

ssl232 4y ago
Indian Railway must have some fascinating stories. It's absolutely ginormous and historic. Isn't it also the largest employer in India, which must put it in the millions? The fact it works at all shows there must be something special about its structure.
- pvsukale3 4y ago
  Yes, IR is largest employer employing 1.54 million people. There has been a lot of automation in signalling, switching recently, because of which we will see number of employees going down in near future. But beyond this, yes it is a humungous project that keeps humming without major glitches. Supported by a lot of workers on the ground doing tasks like track inspections, cleaning, maintenance day and night.
euroderf 4y ago
I remember reading a factoid that at any given time, 10% of the population of India is on a train. Is this for real ? Is this possible ?
- pvsukale3 4y ago
  I am not sure about that factoid, but before pandemic in FY 2019-20 IR did 8.08 Billion trips. IR runs in losses for passenger service, it makes up for those losses in freight service. ref: https://indianrailways.gov.in/railwayboard/uploads/directorate/finance_budget/Budget_2021-22/Statement-Railway-Receipts-Expenditure-Budget-2021-22.pdf https://indianrailways.gov.in/railwayboard/uploads/directora...
- OJFord 4y ago
  That sounds highly implausible to me, even restricting it to peak commuter hours.
- inopinatus 4y ago
  Only if it is very long.
- madcaptenor 4y ago
  That would mean the average person is on a train for 2.4 hours per day. That doesn't seem possible.

ssl232 4y ago

Indian Railway must have some fascinating stories. It's absolutely ginormous and historic. Isn't it also the largest employer in India, which must put it in the millions? The fact it works at all shows there must be something special about its structure.

pvsukale3 4y ago
Yes, IR is largest employer employing 1.54 million people. There has been a lot of automation in signalling, switching recently, because of which we will see number of employees going down in near future. But beyond this, yes it is a humungous project that keeps humming without major glitches. Supported by a lot of workers on the ground doing tasks like track inspections, cleaning, maintenance day and night.

euroderf 4y ago

I remember reading a factoid that at any given time, 10% of the population of India is on a train. Is this for real ? Is this possible ?

pvsukale3 4y ago
I am not sure about that factoid, but before pandemic in FY 2019-20 IR did 8.08 Billion trips. IR runs in losses for passenger service, it makes up for those losses in freight service. ref: https://indianrailways.gov.in/railwayboard/uploads/directorate/finance_budget/Budget_2021-22/Statement-Railway-Receipts-Expenditure-Budget-2021-22.pdf https://indianrailways.gov.in/railwayboard/uploads/directora...
OJFord 4y ago
That sounds highly implausible to me, even restricting it to peak commuter hours.
inopinatus 4y ago
Only if it is very long.
madcaptenor 4y ago
That would mean the average person is on a train for 2.4 hours per day. That doesn't seem possible.