Indian Railways now to levy ‘user fees’ from passengers

Sept. 18: For the 1st time in its history, Indian Railways will now be charging ‘user fees’ from the passengers. VK Yadav, Chairman of Railway Board on Thursday said that the ‘user fees’ will not be charged in all the stations. He said, “The charges will be nominal and will be applicable in about 10-15 percent of the 7000 railway stations across the country.

The ‘user fees’ will be collected as part of train fares for the stations that have been redeveloped and those with high footfall in order to generate revenue to provide better facilities for passengers, said the Board Chairman. He further said, “When the development of the stations gets completed, the money will go to the concessionaires. Till then that amount will go to the railways for improving facilities across stations.”

This decision of the Indian Railways comes in the backdrop of concerns raised over potential rise in the prices of ticket fares with private entities being allowed to run trains in the country.