Title - New rail terminus at MNGT may ease traffic congestion

The proposal for a new railway terminus at Mysore New Goods Terminal (MNGT) station to cope with the growth in traffic in Mysore seems to score over other options proposed in the past.For, there are already six 750-metre long tracks here with a link to receive trains from the Bangalore–Mysore line and they can easily accommodate rakes of long-distance express trains with 24 coaches whose span does not exceed 540 metres.Sources in the Railways told The Hindu that the current inward movement of freight to MNGT was about 15 rakes to 17 rakes a month while there was no originating freight from Mysore but for a rake booked occasionally by a private sugar mill.“The growing competition by roadways and the government’s policy of cross-subsidising passenger traffic by freight have made the latter uncompetitive in the market and hence the MNGT itself may become redundant in future. Hence, the suggestion made by A.H. Vishwanath, MP, at a meeting on Saturday that the MNGT at Metagalli be considered as a possible choice for a new railway terminal for the city, was ideal,” they said.

Block station

The MNGT is also a block station between Mysore and Naganahalli and hence it has adequate staff, signalling mechanism and even a mechanical shed to handle any snags. These only need to be upgraded while funds have to be sought for constructing platforms.

Given the availability of land at MNGT, there can be six to eight platforms and coupled with six platforms at the existing station, they can together cater to long-term future requirements of Mysore. It also has a pitline for maintenance of rakes.

The earlier proposals were to operate a few trains on the Mysore–Hassan section from Belagola but the distance was a factor that went against it. Belagola is 9 km from the city on the outskirts and there is no approach road.

Likewise, Ashokapuram was another station to develop but the idea did not gain popularity as the trains towards Bangalore will have to pass through Mysore station and this would defeat the very purpose of having a new terminal to decongest Mysore.

A factor in favour of developing MNGT into a full-fledged terminal on the lines of Yeshwantpur station in Bangalore is the warehousing facility that has been established by the Central Warehousing Corporation at an estimated cost of Rs. 8 crore. The warehouse has a storage capacity of 12,500 tonnes and about 20,000 sq metres of land has been leased for 30 years to the CWC.

But, if there is an overwhelming growth in passenger traffic and push comes to shove with decline in freight traffic, the lease could be terminated to pave way for a new terminal, said the sources.

Growth of traffic

At present, the six platforms at the Mysore railway station handle 84 trains, including weekly specials. With the completion of track-doubling work and electrification of lines on the Bangalore–Mysore section, this number will go up and hence the need for an alternative terminal for Mysore.


It can easily accommodate rakes of long-distance express trains