Glitch disrupts Metro’s direct train services between Chennai Central and airport stations

Chennai Metro Rail faces technical glitch, disrupting direct services from Chennai Central to airport station, resolved after hours.

For several hours on Wednesday morning, thousands of Chennai Metro Rail commuters could not get direct trains from Chennai Central station to Chennai airport station due to a technical glitch.

Around 6 a.m. Chennai Metro Rail had announced that the direct services will be cancelled for the day because of the snag and commuters who take a train from Chennai Central station to airport will have to change trains at Alandur Metro Rail station. But the rest of the train services were operated as usual in the two corridors of the phase I network — Chennai Central to St. Thomas Mount and Wimco Nagar to Chennai airport. The problem was rectified around 12.30 p.m. after which the direct services resumed.

According to officials of Chennai Metro Rail Limited (CMRL), there was an issue with point machine, a crucial signalling device required for operating trains safely, because of which the services were disrupted.

Officials said the point machine which developed a glitch was near the Chennai airport station. “The snag occurred around 10.30 p.m. on Tuesday but it could not be resolved immediately. It took sometime to arrange the spares and replace it. We tried to fix it as soon as possible,” an official said.

Sources said that on Tuesday afternoon around 2.30 p.m. the point machine developed a glitch for the first time and it was immediately repaired but around 10.30 p.m., the problem recurred. “Some of the train services were delayed on Tuesday night due to machine fault. It should have ideally been fixed last night itself,” a source said.

There are a total of 100 point machines in the phase I network and 50 machines in the depot where maintenance of trains was being undertaken, the official said. He noted that they also have spares for the equipment.