Commuters wanting to travel in AC classes under the Unreserved Ticketing System (UTS) were in for a surprise on Monday when they were doled out sleeper class tickets from the counters.
And the situation would continue for the next ten days. The reason: the railways failed to make timely software changes that include the revised AC fares.
“The software will be ready only by October 10. Till then, we have directed the counter staff to issue sleeper tickets.
The passengers can convert them into AC tickets once they get into the train and approach TTEs based on the availability of seats.
However, for reservation purposes, the revised rates have been already included,” said a senior railway official.
The problem is faced by all ticket counters in the Chennai region after the originally introduced software developed technical glitches.
“The problem for passengers is that we’ve no option if there is no vacancy in AC classes. We can’t cancel the tickets and depend on other modes to escape the scorching sun.
People like us (senior citizens) travel on AC despite the hike in fares due to our ill-health,” K.J. Kuriakose, a retired teacher, said, after being given a sleeper-class ticket to Palakkad from the Ernakulam counter.
Train fares of all AC classes became costlier by more than three per cent from Monday.