The coronavirus pandemic has clearly changed the way we see travel. Nothing is the same now, and looks like it’ll be that way for a while. Contactless travel has become the need of the hour, with services like QR-code based ticket checking being introduced almost everywhere. Echoing this sentiment, Indian Railways has decided to not provide blankets, sheets, and towels to passengers in air-conditioned (AC) train coaches, even after the pandemic subsides. Read on to know more.
AC Train Passengers Might Have To Carry Their Own Sheets And Blankets
Indian Railways is planning to do away with blankets, pillows and bedsheets. So now, if you’re planning to travel in AC train coaches, you might have to carry your own bedding, even after the pandemic ends. News agency ANI quoted Railway Board Chairman Vinod Kumar Yadav on September 5 saying, “We have decided to give a single-use bed to the passengers or the passengers can carry their own bedsheets and blankets even after the pandemic subsides. For this, a detailed policy has been formulated and a decision has been taken.”
Also Read: Nagpur Railway Station To Give Passengers Spit Pouches For Spitting To Maintain Hygiene
Contactless Train Travel To Be The New Normal
Currently, trains are not serving cooked food to passengers either, owing to coronavirus. And, in a bid to follow contactless travel, Northern Railways has already started with QR code based ticket checking service. According to Indian Express, the body has also come up with “post-Covid coach”. It has hands-free facilities like foot-operated water taps and soap dispensers. There is also a plasma air purification system in the AC ducts of these coaches. Apparently, strict hygiene routines are being followed to make train travel safer.
Also Read: Delhi Metro Launches New Smart Card For Contactless Travel Amid Pandemic
80 Special Trains To Run From September 12
The Railways had resumed operations with limited passenger trains running from May 12. Now, it will also run 80 special trains from September 12. Bookings for these begin on September 10. These new trains will ply between cities and towns like Delhi-Gorakhpur, Ahmedabad-Puri, New Delhi-Indore, and Jaipur-Mysuru. Also, Vande Bharat Express will run between New Delhi and Varanasi. Meanwhile, we urge everyone to avoid unnecessary travel. Meanwhile, check out what travelling over a dangerous bridge is like: