Completion of major yard remodelling work at Tirunelveli railway junction on Tuesday afternoon has provided a seamless double line operation on Madurai— Tirunelveli— Nagercoil section.Though track doubling was completed in 2023, some complication in the yard had made simultaneous operation of trains from both ends impossible.Divisional Railway Manager Om Prakash, who was present at the commissioning of the remodelled yard, told The Hindu: “With the commissioning of the remodelled yard, we can have simultaneous reception and dispatch of trains from Tenkasi, Nagercoil and also Madurai sides.”The work, undertaken by RVNL and Madurai Division from June 10, has also helped increase the speed of train movement on up and down lines in the yard from a mere 15 kmph to 60 kmph/70 kmph.“These factors will help in operational efficiency and the junction could handle more trains,” the DRM said.As part of the yard remodelling work, an additional platform (Platform 6) had been created. This line was earlier used for reception and dispatch of goods trains for the goods shed at Tirunelveli junction. This line had remained underutilised after the goods shed was shifted to Gangaikondan, a railway official said.The DRM said the length of all the lines at the junction had been increased by 30 metres to 45 metres, which would help increase the number of coaches in trains.Existing signalling system had been upgraded from Route Relay Interlocking (RRI) to a modern Electronic Interlocking (EI) system. Advanced train detection systems, including track circuits and axle counters, were also provided to improve safety and reliability of train operations, he said.“Forty-three new signalling points have been installed and 21 old points dismantled. All the manually-operated points have been replaced with motor-operated points. Now, the train operation can be controlled from the cabins. This will increase the safety and operational efficiency,” he added.Train No. 20627 Chennai Egmore— Nagercoil Junction Vande Bharat Express was received on the first platform at 2.28 p.m. through the newly-introduced electronic interlocking system.Over and above, a dedicated engine stabling line, a track machine siding, an engine stabling line at the Nagercoil end have been provided. Similarly, provisions for Trip Shed, Tower Wagon Shed and overhead electrical (OHE) facilities for all three pit lines have been provided. Published - June 30, 2026 09:39 pm IST