Visakhapatnam railway station

The station is a terminal station; trains must go back the same way as they come. With many trains arriving at the same time platforms are not always available. In case any train is late, the other trains are stopped at Duvvada or Vizianagaram.[6] The Route Relay Interlocking (RRI) system, an arrangement of signal apparatus that prevents conflicting movements through an arrangement of tracks such as junctions or crossings, is reported to be one of the major causes for these trains being delayed after Duvvada Station.

Over 5,000 people travel between Visakhapatnam and Secunderabad every day. To clear the rush, there are over 18 trains connecting Visakhapatnam and Secunderabad. The Godavari Express, one of the most prestigious trains of the South Central Railway is considered the best way between the cities. However, the rush for the train is too high, that tickets have to be booked before two months from the journey. It was one of the busiest stations when it was part of East Coast Railway zone. On average, every train has a minimum halt period of 20 minutes.[7]

During 1893–1896, the 1,287 km (800 mi)-long tracks covering the entire coastal stretch from Cuttack to Vijayawada, was built and opened to traffic by Bengal Nagpur Railway which was later renamed as South Eastern Railway.[8][9]Bengal Nagpur Railway's line to Cuttack was opened on 1 January 1899.[8] The 514 km (319 mi)-long northern portion of the East Coast line to Cuttack, including the branch line to Puri, was taken over by Bengal Nagpur Railway in 1902.[9][10] The southern part was subsequently merged with Madras and Southern Mahratta Railway. East Coast Railway zone of Indian Railways came into existence in its present form with effect from 1 April 2003. The geographical jurisdiction of the railway is however extended over three states encompassing almost all parts of Orissa along with parts of Srikakulam, Vizainagaram and Visakhapatnam districts of North Eastern Andhra Pradesh, and Bastar and Dantewada districts of Chhattisgarh State. As such, these regions with a long coastal line are rich in mineral and other natural resources, and are on the threshold of an industrial upsurge. [11]

The station is spread over an area of 103,178 m² (1,110,600 sq ft), maintained by 222 employees.[12] The station has 08 platforms and all the tracks are broad gauge and electrified. Almost all platforms are in same size. The station has East and West terminals equipped with reservation counters and has Inter Modal Transport Facility for Bus Station. It is a wheelchair friendly station where almost all platforms are accessible via ramp on foot overbridge. The station has modern escalators and wifi facilities provided by Railtel and Google.For making an enjoyable experience,particulary for children and to cut down monotony of long waiting periods on railway stations, a fun zone has been set up by the Railways at the Railway station[13].There are various games like video shooting and other indoor games which keeps children and adults entertained while waiting at the platform.The fun zone is first of its kind in the country,built on platform 1,and has all high-tech gaming activities on par with game parlours for adults and children.[14]

The Diesel Loco Shed at Visakhapatnam, is the largest diesel shed in Indian Railways, with a capacity to accommodate 300 diesel locomotives. While, the Electric Loco Shed is currently holding 231 electric locomotives.

It holds WDM-2 – 57, WDS-6 – 10, WDG-3A – 96 alongside 3 rail busses.

While, the Visakhapatnam Electric Loco Shed can accommodate 297 locomotives which includes WAG-5 – 83, WAP-4 – 21, WAP-7 – 35, WAG-6 – 9, WAG-9 – 172.

• List of railway stations in India

• Visakhapatnam travel guide from Wikivoyage

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