Why does Delhi's local train system lie in ruins?

The Hindu

27-05-2025

The story so far: While the Delhi metro has recently announced a facility to buy QR tickets on 11 different apps, the Delhi suburban Railway, often referred to as the Delhi local, lies derelict.
When did the system start?
Delhi got its local train service in the first decade after Independence. On January 2, 1955, Delhi's first local train ran from New Delhi station to Sarojini Nagar, then known as Vinay Nagar. The network then gradually expanded to connect Delhi with its neighbouring cities. Today, the suburban system links seven key hubs across the National Capital Region (NCR) — from Sonipat, Bhiwani, Rewari and Palwal in Haryana to Meerut, Ghaziabad, and Aligarh in Uttar Pradesh — with Delhi at its centre.
What is its current state?
Built to serve suburban commuters, this network was meant to ease traffic and support daily travel. But in reality, it's overcrowded, unreliable, and neglected. According to Dr. Velmurugan Senathipati of the Central Road Research Institute, despite its wide reach — especially in NCR's rural areas — the Delhi local carries just 0.5% to 3% of commuter traffic, far below the ideal 6-7%. Passengers report waiting over an hour, 15 times longer than the metro, only to board jam-packed coaches. Sarita Sethi, a government employee commuting from New Town, Faridabad to Okhla, states, 'My commute should ideally be 25 minutes but it's always nearly an hour long due to unscheduled halts as express trains are prioritised.' Nikhil, a railway employee, says, 'There are too many passengers and too few trains. Forget about sitting, during evenings, you can't even stand in the train.' Unlike the Metro, enforcement of women-only coaches is lax in the local. Mrs. Sethi says, 'Men often enter the ladies coach brazenly. Safety and theft are constant concerns. When the train's late in the evenings, the journey from the station to home can easily become a nightmare.' Dr. Velmurugan's study confirms this insecurity, as women make up just 14.6% of local train passengers.
Is the metro a better alternative?
The local train service in Delhi is much more affordable than the metro. Dr. Velmurugan's research shows that nearly 40% of suburban rail passengers earn less than ₹5,000 a month. For them, the local train is not just a choice, it's the only option they can afford.
A local train ride from Greater Noida to Delhi costs just ₹15, compared to ₹90 by metro or ₹69 through a bus-metro combo, excluding last mile connection fares. Over a month, that's ₹750 by the local versus a staggering ₹4,500 by metro. Moreover, a Monthly Season Ticket (MST) brings costs down to just ₹270 a month or ₹9 a day.
Additionally, local trains have a dedicated vendors' bogey, widely used by dairy farmers to transport produce to markets like Sadar Bazaar and Chandni Chowk. But even this advantage is fading. Amit, a dairy farmer from Ajayabpur village in Greater Noida, says, 'We had to stop using the local because delays were spoiling the produce. My friends now either rely on road transport or have quit the trade altogether, it just isn't profitable anymore.' These concerns have driven passengers to explore more reliable — though far costlier — alternatives, such as private buses or personal vehicles. Railway officials have noted a sharp decline in the issuance of MSTs, a clear sign that even loyal users are abandoning the system.
What should be done?
Dr. Velmurugan states, 'the local isn't a replacement for the Metro, it should complement it. It can act as a feeder service across NCR's rural areas where the Metro can't go. Plus, it's cheaper to build. There needs to be resonance, not a race,' he explains. Dr. Velmurugan suggests better scheduling, increased frequency, newer train sets, and most importantly, dedicated tracks. These changes, he says, could revive the system. But there are no such official modernisation or renovation plans in the offing as of now.