Ghaziabad station sees over 1 lakh daily passengers; revamp 40% complete

Ram Vilas, trying to board a train from Ghaziabad on Thursday, said the queue at the ticket counter was so dense that he could not buy a ticket. The railway station, which typically handles about 50,000 passengers a day, has recorded more than one lakh daily passengers in recent days.

The station has no dedicated passenger holding area, while its Rs 350-crore redevelopment remains incomplete. Work began in January 2023 with a 30-month target, and officials said about 40% has been completed. Civil work on the quarters building and station entry has started, while the concourse is yet to be built. The plan includes a three-storey station complex, escalators, ticket vending machines, parking, foot overbridges and a 24-km skywalk linking six platforms.

At Kaushambi bus depot, UPSRTC recorded about 2.5 lakh passengers over two days and increased bus operations from around 800 to 1,200. Regional manager Kesari Nandan linked the surge to the state’s temporary free bus travel scheme for women, available with one attendant from Thursday morning until Saturday midnight. Kaushambi and Sahibabad depot upgrades have not begun, while work at Old Bus Adda is under way.