Train delays mar Eid travels as holidaymakers spend hours waiting at Kamalapur

Train delays and rescheduling have transformed the homebound journeys of Eid-ul-Azha holidaymakers on the northern and south-western routes into a nightmare.

Some trains have been running up to 12 hours behind schedule, forcing its passengers to wait at the Kamalapur Station platforms for hours on end.

With the Eid vacation officially commencing on Sunday, the majority of people sought to return home during the weekend holidays on Friday and Saturday.

And amid the rush, the troubles of travellers were exacerbated when a Khulna-bound Sundarban Express derailed west of the Bangabandhu Bridge in Tangail on Friday, leading to a three-and-a-half-hour suspension of train services on the route. 

According to the railway authorities, the accident forced numerous schedule changes delaying almost all trains bound for the Rangpur, Rajshahi and Khulna divisions across the Bangabandhu Bridge. 

The Padma Express, which was scheduled to leave Dhaka for Rajshahi at 11pm on Friday, eventually left the platform at 10am on Saturday.

"Despite spending the whole night at the station, I'm just happy to be able to go home now," Raqibul Islam, a passenger of the train, told bdnews24.com.

The authorities also rescheduled the departure of another Rajshahi-bound train, the Dhumketu Express, from 6am on Saturday to 2.30 pm the same day.

The departure of the Khulna-bound Sundarban Express, initially slated for 6.20 am Saturday, was pushed back to 12.30 pm. But as of 11am, the train was yet to arrive in Dhaka.