RailEnquiry

At least 20 two-wheeler riders had a close shave when their vehicles got stuck in a jam at the railway crossing at Kasarwadi around 7.30 pm on Saturday even as the Pune-Mumbai Pragati Express hurtled down the tracks. The train came to a halt a few metres away from the railway crossing.The incident occurred when the vehicles were trying to cross over to the other side after the gates opened for a short while between the passage of two trains. Since the road is narrow on both sides of the gates, a jam ensues every time the gates are opened. On the other hand, some trains arrive at an interval of only ten minutes.On Saturday, while the vehicles were yet to clear the tracks before the gates were to shut again for the next train to pass, Pragati Express started to approach."We panicked. We scrambled to cross the tracks but could not, since there was a jam. Luckily, the train came to a halt at some distance," said Anil Landge, one of the two-wheeler riders.The gateman said since he could not close the gate due to the jam, the train did not get the signal to proceed and had to stop. He, however, complained that this was a regular phenomenon at the railway crossing.While the Central Railways has maintained that it was the PCMC's job to widen the approach roads, Municipal Commissioner Shrikar Pardeshi said he would talk to DCP Vishwas Pandhare to address the problem.