Daytime train journey
Trains are still my favorite mode of transport. Even a daytime journey is better than a night journey for 11 hrs in an “Arasu Viraivu Pokku Varathu Kazhagam” bus. Chances of you attaining moksham pretty quick is quite high in that. And let’s not even even talk about the Omni bus services. They deserve a separate blog series. Guess regular KPN travellers would do that 
I’ve taken Train no: 2675 Kovai Express far many times than I wish to remember. Business travelers between Chennai and Coimbatore would always prefer a night train for obvious reasons. But those days I always took Kovai because I had precious little to do during daytime anyway. And the ticket charges were much cheaper than the sleeper class ticket. And if I can manage a window seat, nothing like it. Add to it some time at the footboard and i used to feel like a Mani Ratnam sitting on a fast moving trolley shooting a dance sequence in the open landscape.
This route has become very familiar. So familiar that I can assess the exact location, the previous station, the next station and how much time it would normally take all by a look of the electric posts nearby and the distance marked in it. Here’s some useless trivia.
Starting from Central if the post is
40km – Its Thiruvallur
67Km – Arakonam junction
128-130km – Katpadi junction
180 km - Ambur
213-215 km – Jolarpet junction
265 km – Morappur
332 km – Salem junction
392 km - Erode
442 km – Tiruppur
And 479 km – Irugur
After that the sequence would change for the next 17 km because it’s a single track
I think this is fairly accurate give or take a km. And Kovai on normal speed covers 45 km in 30 mins on an average.
Nowadays, traveling in Kovai during weekends has become a pain. All the coaches are jam packed. With vendors of all types and shapes invading the coaches, its more like a speeding Ranganathan Street.
November 24th, 2005 at 3:41 pm
I went on train, 10years back to ambathore. u have many information about train.
November 24th, 2005 at 7:57 pm
I thought only I was interested in these details
Actually they are not useless.
And Jolarpettai should be 200 if am not wrong. And all the lampposts besides the tracks have the KM distance.
Arakkonam is 69/1 to be exact
And before reaching chennai central, below the last signal you can find out the platform the train is going to halt. That way, you can plan to stand on the left door or the right one
November 24th, 2005 at 10:42 pm
bayangara statistics pola kovaiku mattum thana illa vera ethavathu routekum theriyuma
November 25th, 2005 at 7:43 am
@jeevan
check out http://www.irfca.org
@ferrari
welcome here:)
great people think alike illaya?:)
danks for the platform info:)
Arakonam i concede i maybe wrong.
Jolarpet? next time neengaley paarungo
@dubukku
hehehe…. madurai route innum avlova pazhakkam illa. but already started noting it down
November 25th, 2005 at 10:04 am
prabhu,
I like travelling in day time train.. I used to go from Chennai to Salem (My home town) for the 4 years i was studying in chennai. Intercity experss and Yercaud express were my fav.
In intercity, we used to go as a gang and naanga seat laye utkaara matome.. oru oru compartmentaa poi.. eiyarkai katchigalai rasichite poveom
U know what: Chennai to salem -> 333km
Salem to chennai -> 334km!
memorable moments.. inga US trains ellam namma ooru train maarivala
November 25th, 2005 at 11:26 am
>>U know what: Chennai to salem -> 333km
Salem to chennai -> 334km!
very interesting. i guess u refering to the km in train tickets. anyway danks for the info.