Schedule goes haywire since train collision in Joydebpur

Schedule of trains bound for the countrys western destinations has almost collapsed on Saturday following the collision of two trains at Joydebpur in Gazipur on Friday, causing immense sufferings to the passengers.

A Dhaka-bound Tangail commuter train collided head-on with a freight train carrying oil to the north of Bangladesh near the Joydebpur Railway Junction around 10:50am on Friday.
Masud Sarwar, Station Manager of Kamalapur Railway Station, said almost all trains bound for the western zone and Mymensingh got delayed by two to three hours.

Services resumed on the alternate route several hours after the accident, but train operations have yet to return to normal due to repair work, said Joydebpur Station Master Md Hanif Mia.

Meanwhile, hundreds of passengers from various districts were seen waiting for hours at Joydebpur Junction to reach their destinations early on Saturday. Huge number of passengers were waiting for trains at Kamalapur RAilway Station on Saturday.

Rony was waiting with his family for a Jamalpur-bound Teesta Express train at the Joydebpur Junction. The merchandiser said he had endured great trouble with his family as the Teesta Express, which is supposed to leave the station at 7:30am, had not arrived as of 10:00am.

Md Rafiqul Islam, Signal Inspector at Joydebpur Railway Junction, said the train schedule has been disorderly since the incident. The delays are due to trains travelling in both directions using a single line.

The Mymensingh-bound Balaka left the Junction via the up line while the Dhaka-bound Burimari Express passed through the down line as of 9:30am on Saturday, he said.

Station Master Hanif said trains are being run on a rationing system as only one line is operational. The authorities are allowing a single train to use the line at a time while keeping the rest waiting in the neighbouring Dhirasram and Joydebpur stations.

Five carriages of the Tangail commuter train were damaged and ten carriages of both trains, including the engines, derailed in Fridays accident. The rescue efforts began from 3:30pm on Friday and were not completed until 11:00am on Saturday.

A total of eight train carriages, including the engines, have been recovered by 11:00am on Saturday. Efforts are underway to recover the remaining two, which might take another two and a half hours, Hanif added.