Indian Railways is working with IIT Hyderabad to study traffic and passenger movement at Secunderabad and Lingampalli railway stations. The move aims at reducing congestion and making it easier for passengers to enter, exit and move around the stations. The Secunderabad and Lingampalli railway stations falls under the administrative jurisdiction South Central Railway (SCR).

Secunderabad railway station, located in the twin-city region of Hyderabad and Secunderabad, is one of the major railway stations in the area. The station has 10 platforms and handles around 2 lakh passengers on average every day. It also handles around 210 train services daily, carrying approximately 84,000 passengers.

On the other hand, Lingampalli is also an important railway station serving passengers across the Hyderabad and Secunderabad region. It handles more than 30 pairs of express trains and over 50 MMTS services, with an average daily passenger footfall of more than 20,000.

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Located in western Hyderabad, the Lingampalli station is the nearest rail terminal for passengers travelling to and from areas such as HITEC City, Cyber Towers and the Financial District. With passenger traffic gradually increasing, Lingampalli has also emerged as an important coaching terminal for the Hyderabad region.

Now, the zonal railway has engaged IIT Hyderabad to conduct comprehensive traffic assessment studies at these two stations. The study will focus on improving passenger dispersal, traffic circulation and multimodal connectivity around the stations.

According to A Sridhar, Chief Public Relations Officer (CPRO) of SCR, the assessment will examine both vehicular and pedestrian movement, access to the stations, traffic circulation, parking areas and pick-up and drop-off arrangements within the station premises. It will also identify traffic bottlenecks and suggest improvements at nearby junctions and signals.

The study is expected to provide data-driven solutions to improve passenger safety, accessibility and the overall movement of traffic around the stations.

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IIT Hyderabad to use drones, AI-based CCTV analysis to study traffic

The traffic assessment will use technology-based methods to understand passenger and vehicle movement at Secunderabad and Lingampalli stations.

According to the railway official, IIT Hyderabad will use drone surveys, Artificial Intelligence (AI) and Machine Learning (ML)-based CCTV analysis, passenger field surveys and traffic simulations as part of the study.

These inputs will help identify traffic bottlenecks and areas that require improvement, including pedestrian movement, vehicle circulation, parking and pick-up and drop-off facilities. The study will also examine ways to improve multimodal connectivity around the stations.

The recommendations are expected to help integrate better traffic management and passenger movement arrangements into the future station infrastructure.