Pune: Citizens Raise Concerns Over Accessibility and Facilities at Soon-to-be Fully Operational Hadapsar Railway Terminal

Reported By Amit Singh
Pune, 14th April 2025: As the Hadapsar Railway Terminal is set to become fully operational within the next 45 to 60 days, several citizens have raised concerns regarding accessibility, suburban connectivity, and supporting infrastructure. The announcement was made by Union Railway Minister Ashwini Vaishnaw during a press conference held on April 11 at the Jio World Convention Centre in Mumbai.

The terminal is being developed under the Amrit Bharat Station Scheme, which aims to modernize railway stations across India with enhanced passenger amenities, improved traffic circulation, inter-modal transport integration, and upgraded infrastructure such as waiting halls, escalators, lifts, and better signage systems.

Despite the ongoing development, residents have expressed concerns about practical challenges related to accessibility. Abhishek Sonavale highlighted the long-standing lack of suburban services:
“How to reach Hadapsar station? Is there suburban local train connectivity to catch another express train? Kindly review local connectivity before full-scale operations. For the past two to three decades, there have been no suburban locals on the Pune-Daund section, causing inconvenience to the public.”

Ramesh S. Yadav urged authorities to focus on facilities once operations begin:
“Maintain cleanliness in washrooms, ensure escalators are functional, provide sufficient parking space, and implement proper security systems.”

Issues outside the station premises were also raised. Vishal Jadhav commented,
“हडपसर स्टेशन बाहेर साधे वीज दिव्यांची व्यवस्था नाही. बारीक रस्ता..”
(There is no proper street lighting outside the station. The access road is narrow.)

Suresh Kulkarni pointed to the absence of local connectivity:
“हडपसर स्टेशनवर कितीही प्लॅटफॉर्म करा, परंतु येथे येणारे प्रवासी यांना पुणे कडे जाण्यासाठी लोकल नाही. येथे सिटी बस वा लोकलचा प्रश्न आधी मार्गी लावा.”
(No matter how many platforms are built, passengers coming to Hadapsar face issues due to no local train service to Pune. City bus or local connectivity must be arranged first.)

Suggestions for alternate terminal development were also voiced.
Sunil P. Parate said,
“हडपसर स्टेशन पेक्षा चिंचवड स्टेशनचा विस्तार करा म्हणजे पिंपरी-चिंचवड वासीयांना महत्त्वाचे स्टेशन मिळेल.”
(Instead of Hadapsar, expand Chinchwad station so that Pimpri-Chinchwad residents get a key terminal.)

Sanjay Deshmukh added,
“खरे तर चिंचवड किंवा खडकी चांगला पर्याय ठरला असता. हडपसर येथे पोहोचणे खूप कठीण आहे.”
(Chinchwad or Khadki could have been better options. Reaching Hadapsar is quite difficult.)

While the Hadapsar terminal is poised to enhance rail operations and reduce the load on Pune Junction, citizen feedback signals a demand for parallel development of local transport connectivity, last-mile access, and commuter-friendly infrastructure to ensure optimal utility of the new terminal.