Title - City cyclists’ plea to the Railways Make our life easy

Cycling enthusiasts in Mumbai have asked the Railways - both Central and Western - not only to reduce the steep charges levied for ferrying bicycles in the luggage compartment but also make the procedure of procuring the luggage tickets easier.In the last few years, many people have reacquainted themselves with the joys of cycling for its health benefits. However, they say that ferrying the two-wheelers in trains is a cumbersome process.Meenal Sharma, an operations executive at a media house, cycled with her friends from Mumbai to Amby Valley and back on Saturday. Exhausted by the 13-hour journey Sharma and one friend stopped on their way back at Kharghar, Navi Mumbai, and decided to take a train from there towards Borivali. Sharma and her friend bought tickets and boarded the luggage compartment with their cycles."At Dadar station a ticket checker asked us for tickets. We showed him our tickets but he asked us to pay fine for not taking a luggage ticket for the cycles. We said that our ticket stated we could carry 35 kilogram of weight along with us and our cycles would be around 15 kilograms," Sharma added.After an argument of over an hour, Sharma and her friend were shown the rule book that stated that the luggage charge would also depend on the dimensions of the luggage. Thus for carrying cyles, they'd have to pay a luggage charge for 40 kg. "Railway tickets only mention the weight that can be carried and not the dimensions so it's confusing," she said, adding that the Railways should consider charging cyclists less.

While Sharma and her friends were let off with a fine of Rs 160, Keyur Salgaonkar, another regular cyclist, realized that he had to pay Rs 142 daily if he wanted to ferry his cycle from Borivali to Churchgate.

"I thought it would be easier to move around my office area for my work on the cycle instead of waiting for cabs or buses. Not only was the procedure of getting a luggage ticket cumbersome - I had to find a ticket checking staff who made a receipt - the money wasn't feasible either." Salgaonkar added that he was forced to drop the idea of taking the cycle to work.

Karl Gomes, an advertising professional who co founded the group Andheri (e) Raat Mein Cycle Tere Haat Mein, has now written a letter to railway authorities asking them to cut the luggage rates and making the luggage ticket procurement simpler. He told Mumbai Mirror, "Until the government takes steps to promote cycling in Mumbai, the situation will not improve. They should reduce the steep fare considering that we are made to pay for a weight of 40 kilogram though a cycle does not weigh more than 15 kg."

Transport expert Ashok Datar supported the demand saying one needs to understand that to reduce congestion in Mumbai, cycling needs to be promoted. "Railways should only charge a little higher than the ticket price for a single person to encourage cyclists during non-peak hours," he said.

A senior railway official said the luggage rates could be revised for those carrying cycles and chances are that the rule could have been made to dissuade people from ferrying bicycles in the luggage compartment, as in rush hours the luggage compartment is overcrowded. Chief PRO Sharat Chandrayan for Western Railways said, "Railways will look into these demands and then take a decision."