Steps taken by Railways to avoid delay of Trains in Fog

New Delhi, November 20, 2019: A large number of trains are affected every year during foggy weather in the winter months in Northern parts of the country. The following steps have been taken by the Railways to avoid delay of trains during the foggy weather:-

1. To enhance the level of safety when the trains running in automatic block signaling sections, a modified automatic signaling system has been introduced in Northern Railway and North Central Railway which restricts the number of trains between two stations during foggy weather.

2. Luminous paints/strips have been provided on the Signal Sighting Boards viz. Passenger and Goods warning boards, signals at stations/interlocked Level Crossing Gates and Semaphore signal arms to enhance visibility of signal aspects to loco pilots.

3. Inspection at Officer and supervisor level, including night inspections, are being carried out during foggy weather for spreading more awareness and alertness among the maintenance staff.

4. To assist the Loco Pilots to run the train during foggy weather condition, Fog PASS Device, a Global Positioning System (GPS) based hand held portable device, which is not installed on a locomotive as such, is given to Loco Pilots in fog affected sections. It serves as an aid for the crew during foggy weather through audio visual alarm, wherever any landmark comes within the Geo-fence range. Location of stations, warning boards, signals, level crossing gates and Whistle for Level crossing (W/L) boards in the section is fed in the equipment. It displays speed of the locomotive, distance and time to reach landmarks and is carried by the Loco Pilots. As on date, 12,205 Fog PASS Devices have been provided on Indian Railways.

This information was given by the Minister of Railways and Commerce & Industry, Shri Piyush Goyal in a written reply to a question in Lok Sabha today.