The Southern Railway, headquartered at Chennai, is one of the 19 zones of Indian Railways. It is the earliest of the 19 zones of the Indian Railways created in independent India. It was created on 14 April 1951 by merging three state railways, namely, the Madras and Southern Mahratta Railway, the South Indian Railway Company, and the Mysore State Railway. The South Indian Railway was originally created in the British colonial times as Great Southern of India Railway Co founded in Britain in 1853 and registered in 1859. Its original headquarters was in Tiruchirappalli (Trichy) and was registered as a company in London only in 1890. At present, after re-organization of existing railway zones and creation of new zones undertaken by the Indian Railways between 2002 and 2003, Southern Railway has emerged as the 4th largest zone after undertaking some gauge conversion projects and creation of new lines. The trains operated by the southern railway are rated the cleanest as well as cleanly maintained trains of the Indian Railways.
Ernakulam Junction railway station is the biggest railway station in the city of Kochi in Kerala, India. Controlling 376 train routes at a time, it is the busiest railway junction station in South India. At ₹158 crore in financial year 2018–19, it is the second largest in terms of passenger revenues in Kerala and the fifth largest in Southern Railway. It is an A1 classified station operated by the Southern Railway zone of the Indian Railways and comes under the Thiruvananthapuram railway division. Ernakulam Junction is also the first fully disabled-friendly railway station in India.
Cochin Harbour Terminus (CHTS) is one of the railway stations in the city of Kochi, in the state of Kerala, India. It is located on the Willingdon Island. The Cochin Harbour Terminus is the principal station providing rail connectivity to the southern segment of the Port of Kochi located on the Willingdon Island.. And hence it mainly handles goods transport in and out of the Kochi Port. Cochin Harbour Terminus railway station is not in use after the commissioning of Vallarpadam container terminus. The station is now locked and all the trains to this station from Ernakulam Junction were stopped in 2013.
Aluva railway station is a railway station in Aluva, in the city of Kochi in the state of Kerala. It is an NSG 3 grade station under Thiruvananthapuram railway division. It lies in the Shoranur–Cochin Harbour section of Thiruvananthapuram railway division.
Thiruvananthapuram Railway Division (TVC) is one of the six administrative divisions of the Southern Railway, Indian Railways. It has its headquarters at Thiruvananthapuram, the capital city of the state of Kerala, India. Thiruvananthapuram Division was formed on 2 October 1979 which serves the eight districts of southern part of the Kerala, Kanniyakumari district and some parts of Tirunelveli District in Tamil Nadu. With 104 stations in its territorial jurisdiction, it is the fourth largest out of six divisions in Southern Railway. It is the southernmost railway division of India and manages 625 km of route track and 108 railway stations in the states of Kerala and Tamil Nadu. The major stations of the division are Thiruvananthapuram Central, Ernakulam Junction, Kollam Junction, Thrissur, Kottayam, Ernakulam Town, Chengannur, Kayamkulam, Aluva, Nagercoil Junction, Kanniyakumari, Alappuzha, Changanasseri, Tiruvalla, Kochuveli, Varkala,Mavelikara.
Kottayam railway station is located in Kottayam, Kerala state, India. Kottayam railway station is managed by Southern Railway. Kottayam lies on the busy rail route between Thiruvananthapuram and Ernakulam. It is an NSG 3 category station. The station is served by several long-distance trains connecting most major cities in the country on a daily basis like New Delhi, Mumbai, Chennai, Bengaluru, Hyderabad, Coimbatore, Bhopal, Pune and Mangalore. Trains connecting extreme ends of india also passes through the station like Jammu tawi, Dibrugarh etc. It is one of the busiest station in Thiruvananthapuram central - Ernakulam route due to ease in accessibility of Sabarimala temple. Kottayam railway station is the halt station for passengers to Sabarimala temple, Vagamon, Kumarakom, Illickal kallu - high range, St. Alphonsa's tomb, Pala and so on. Station currently has 2 by-passing platforms -, and 3 terminal platforms. All platforms are able to accommodate locomotives with 24 coaches. Station is currently under construction of 1A Platform along with a new entrance. By completing double line from Chingavanam to Ettumanoor, southern railway has achieved its complete stretch of double rail line from Thiruvananthapuram to Mangalore
Chengannur railway station is an 'NSG 3 category' station located at Chengannur in the Indian state of Kerala. It is one of the busiest stations in the Thiruvananthapuram Central–Kollam Junction–Kottayam–Ernakulam route, primarily due to the Sabarimala pilgrims. The station is managed by Southern Railway under the Thiruvananthapuram railway division. Chengannur railway station mainly serves the people of Alappuzha and Pathanamthitta district.
Kayamkulam Junction railway station is a railway station in Kerala, located at Kayamkulam, Alappuzha district. It is an NSG 3 category station. It stands at the junction of three lines- south towards Thiruvananthapuram via Kollam, north towards Ernakulam via Alappuzha and north-east towards Ernakulam Junction/Ernakulam Town via Kottayam. The station is located 1.7 km (1.1 mi) from Kayamkulam town, near Kayamkulam–Punalur Road. In 2018, the rail wi-fi broad-band connection has been introduced in Kayamkulam.
Kollam Junction railway station is a junction station situated in the city of Kollam in Kerala, India. It is the second largest railway station in Kerala in terms of area and largest in terms of number of tracks and one of the oldest railway stations in the state. It is also the second busiest railway station in Kerala in terms of trains handled per day. World's third longest railway platform is situated at Kollam railway station.
Chingavanam is a suburb of Kottayam city between Kottayam and Changanassery in Kottayam district of Kerala state, India.
Tiruvalla railway station is a railway station located at Thiruvalla town in Pathanamthitta district, Kerala, India. The station is under Thiruvananthapuram railway division of Southern Railway. It is an NSG 4 category station and has daily trains to cities like Thiruvananthapuram, Kochi, Kozhikode, Mangalore, Bangalore, Coimbatore, Madurai, Chennai, Hyderabad, Tirupati, Pune, Bhopal, Mumbai and New Delhi.
Ernakulam–Kayamkulam coastal line is a railway line which runs along the coastal areas of Alappuzha, Ernakulam districts in Kerala state of India. The coastal railway line starts as a branch line from Ernakulam Junction railway station towards Alappuzha and joins with the route via Kottayam at Kayamkulam Junction. This is the only main track in Kerala yet to be doubled and the single line traffic causes major delays in the route. The coastal line has a total distance of 102 km (63 mi).
Kottarakara railway station is a railway station in the Indian town of Kottarakkara in Kollam district, Kerala. Kottarakara railway station falls under the Madurai railway division of the Southern Railway zone of Indian Railways. It is a 'D-Class'(NSG 6) Adersh station. Indian railway is connecting Kottarakkara with various cities in India like Kollam, Thiruvananthapuram, Ernakulam, Thrissur, Palakkad, Kottayam, Madurai, Trichy, Chennai, Tenkasi, Tirunelveli, Nagercoil & with various towns like Punalur, Paravur, Kayamkulam, Thiruvalla, Changanacherry, Aluva, Guruvayoor, Punalur, Sengottai, Rajapalayam, Virudunagar, Mavelikkara, Chengannur, Aluva, Karunagappalli, Varkala, Kazhakkoottam, Neyyattinkara, Kanyakumari & Valliyur. Neighbourhood railway stations are Ezhukone and Kuri (Kura).
Transport in Kollam includes various modes of road, rail and water transportation in the city and its suburbs. State-owned Kerala State Road Transport Corporation buses, private buses, Indian Railways, state-owned Kerala State Water Transport Department boats & ferry, taxis and auto rickshaws are serving the city of Kollam. The city had a strong commercial reputation since the days of the Phoenicians and Romans. Ibn Battuta mentioned Kollam Port as one of the five Indian ports he had seen during the course of his twenty-four year travels.
Mavelikara railway station is a railway station (NSG 5 Category) in Alappuzha district, Kerala and falls under the Thiruvananthapuram railway division of the Southern Railway zone, Indian Railways. The station is served by several long-distance trains connecting most major cities in the country like Thiruvananthapuram, Kochi, Kozhikode, Mangalore, Bangalore, Coimbatore, Madurai, Chennai, Hyderabad, Tirupati, Visakhapatnam, Madgaon, Nagpur, Nagercoil, Pune, Bhopal, Ahmedabad, Kolkata, Guwahati, Mumbai and New Delhi.
Piravom Road railway station is a railway station in Kottayam district, Kerala and falls under the Thiruvananthapuram railway division of the Southern Railway zone, Indian Railways. It is located in the village of Velloor.
Chottanikkara Road railway station is a railway station in Ernakulam District, Kerala, and falls under the Thiruvananthapuram railway division of the Southern Railway zone, Indian Railways. It is located in the town of Kureekkad.
Tiruturaipundi Junction railway station is a junction railway station serving the town of Thiruthuraipoondi in Tamil Nadu, India.
Edamann railway station is a railway station on Kollam–Sengottai branch line connecting Kollam district in Kerala with Tamil Nadu. Edamann railway station falls under the Madurai railway division of the Southern Railway zone of Indian Railways. It is an 'E-Class' railway station, currently acting as the terminal station for trains running on Kollam–Sengottai railway line due to ongoing gauge conversion works between Edamann and Bhagavathipuram railway stations on the rail stretch.
The Ernakulam–Kottayam–Kayamkulam line is a railway line which runs through the districts of Ernakulam, Kottayam, Pathanamthitta and Alappuzha in Kerala state of India. This railway line starts as a branch line from Ernakulam Town railway station towards Kottayam and joins with the Ernakulam–Kayamkulam coastal line route via Alappuzha at Kayamkulam Junction. This line comes under the Thiruvananthapuram railway division of Southern Railway Zone of Indian Railways. The line has a total distance of 118 km (73 mi). The Ernakulam Town/Ernakulam Junction - Kottayam section opened in 1956-57 and Kottayam - Kollam section in 1957.
