Railways has been gradually losing share of freight movement traditionally to road transport because of non-competitive tariff structure. During April to September, Indian Railways carried 558.10 million tonnes of revenue earning freight traffic as against 531 million tonne in the year ago period, showing an increase of just 5%. The under-development of freight terminals and challenges in managing first and last-mile connectivity are other reasons for lower attraction of railways. Though running late, the DFC project would enable railways re-capture market share in freight transportation, the Icra report said. Station redevelopment is another focus area with plans of upgrading 100 stations over the next five years to be developed under the PPP model with the private sector getting revenues from real estate.

Source: dna February 01, 2018 00:22 UTC