Train tracking system to improve travel experience

Commuters will no longer have to wait for hours at stations

LAHORE: People who frequently commute by trains won't have to wait at the stations for hours as the Pakistan Railways has completed the installation of a tracker system which will be inaugurated on February 12. The developer of the system donated it free of cost to PR.

The tracker systems were installed in train engines across the country in order to update their systems. Through the GPRS tracker system, passengers will be able to get information about their train's timings on their mobile phones before they reach the railway station.

The passenger will receive all the information, including the train's timings, in the Urdu and English languages. They will also get information during travel on engine failures and replacements. Passengers, governmental and nongovernmental employees and students, who travel on a daily basis by train, will be able to take advantage of the tracking system.



The tracker has been installed in all trains that go to Karachi, Peshawar, Rawalpindi, Faisalabad, Multan, Sargodha and Kasur. According to the source, the speed of the train and record of the last two weeks can also be obtained through the software.

In this regard, the tracking system would also be linked to the Lahore Central Control Room Office. The staff will also be able to monitor the position of trains through TV screens.

According to the Railways mechanical department's staff members, the tracker system will start working immediately after locomotive engines start. Moreover, through a specific mobile application, passengers can find out the location of any train. The passenger will have to type their train number to get information about the arrival time.

Muhammad Mudassir, who runs a software company, has introduced the tracker system. "My father is a former employee of the Pakistan Railways. We grew up travelling by trains. Many times we waited for hours for trains which were delayed without any information being given to the passengers.

I came up with the idea to work on the tracker system when my family and I faced problems like thousands of other commuters," he said. The system will ring a bell if the train will be 30 minutes away from the station.



"I could sell this system for Rs80 million, but I gave it to Pakistan Railways free of charge," claims Mudassir.

Railways Chairman Dr Raja Jalal Sultan Sikander said the installation of the tracker system will also reduce the rush of people at train stations. "Most importantly, people will save their time by reaching the station a few minutes before the arrival of the train."

Pakistan Railways Additional General Manager Mohammad Ejaz Abro said that the tracker system will also inform the administration just as the train leaves the engine shed and just as it departs from the station. Moreover, after getting information through the tracker system, an alternate engine will immediately be moved in case of a failure.

Published in The Express Tribune, February 9^th, 2019.