Short platforms restrict Vistadome expansion on Sengottai route

Kerala’s new Vistadome service on the Kollam–Sengottai railway route faces an immediate capacity constraint, with short platforms at several stations preventing the addition of tourist coaches without reducing accommodation for ordinary passengers.

The problem has emerged just days after the panoramic coach began operating on the Madurai–Guruvayur Express on October 22. Railway infrastructure across the mountainous corridor cannot yet support longer formations at all stops, potentially forcing a choice between expanding premium tourism facilities and retaining unreserved seating.

One unreserved coach was already withdrawn when the Vistadome carriage was introduced. Adding another under the existing operating arrangement would require the removal of a further general coach from the 13-coach train, reducing space available to passengers who travel without advance reservations.

The train’s formation on the inaugural Vistadome journey included seven unreserved coaches, two sleeper coaches, one air-conditioned three-tier coach, the tourist carriage, a generator car and a guard van. A banking locomotive was also attached behind the train between Punalur and Bhagavathipuram to assist its movement through steep Western Ghats gradients.

Platform extensions are needed at 10 stations along the Kollam–Sengottai corridor, with six stations currently capable of accommodating trains of only 13 coaches. Although work has been sanctioned at several locations, progress varies, and the infrastructure improvements are not scheduled for completion until July 2027.

Southern Railway chief project manager Rajesh Kumar outlined that target at a review meeting in Punalur on September 24, attended by Kollam MP N K Premachandran and divisional railway manager Om Prakash Meena. The project manager subsequently inspected stations requiring longer platforms on two occasions.

The stations identified for extensions under an earlier tender include New Aryankavu, Thenmala, Edamon, Avaneeswaram, Kuri, Kottarakkara, Kundara East, Kundara, Chandanathope and Kilikollur. Separate work is progressing at Ezhukone and Aryankavu, while tenders have yet to be issued for Ottakkal, Kazhuthurutti and Edappalayam.

Only Punalur and Bhagavathipuram had platforms capable of accommodating 24-coach trains when the converted broad-gauge section opened in 2018. Kottarakkara can presently receive trains of up to 18 coaches, while level crossings at both ends of Kundara restrict the scope for extending its platforms beyond capacity for 20 coaches.

Plans for Edamon similarly envisage accommodation for 20 coaches. At stations with crossing facilities, current improvements concentrate on extending the second platform. New Aryankavu has two railway tracks but only one passenger platform, whereas work at Thenmala covers both platforms.

The engineering limitations have become more consequential because the Vistadome coach attracted strong advance reservations. Bookings for several initial services reached waiting-list status, reflecting interest in the daytime journey through forests, valleys and railway bridges along the Western Ghats.

Southern Railway scheduled the panoramic carriage on the Madurai–Guruvayur service from Thursday to Sunday and on its return journey from Friday to Monday. The arrangement provides a daylight opportunity to view the hill section, unlike several other services that cross the terrain outside the main sightseeing hours.

The coach has expansive windows and a glazed roof designed to improve views from inside the carriage. The route passes the distinctive 13-arch bridge near Kazhuthurutti and through the Thenmala area, attractions that have helped generate interest among visitors and railway enthusiasts.

The competing requirements are nevertheless practical rather than simply commercial. Unreserved coaches serve passengers making routine journeys between towns and smaller stations, while Vistadome accommodation requires reservations. Substituting a tourist carriage for a general coach changes the type of capacity available, even when the overall train length stays unchanged.

Railway Minister Ashwini Vaishnaw told the Lok Sabha in December 2024 that the Kollam–Sengottai sector then handled 10 mail and express trains and six passenger trains. He said coach additions depended on traffic requirements, operational feasibility and available resources, noting the numerous sharp curves along the Punalur–Bhagavathipuram–Sengottai section.

Earlier technical trials established that longer trains could negotiate the hill section, but those tests did not remove the need to accommodate passengers safely at intermediate stations. The unfinished platforms therefore remain a separate constraint from the ability of locomotives and rolling stock to traverse the route.

The same parliamentary reply put expenditure on gauge conversion, electrification and associated development of the line at Rs 419.42 crore. The railway administration has also been extending selected platforms to accommodate longer conventional services along the corridor.