Indian Railways Passenger Traffic Analysis - IR Year Book 2024-25

 

Indian Railways Passenger Traffic Analysis

Proportion to Total Traffic by Number of Passengers 

1960-61 to 2024-25

Source: Indian Railways Year Book 2024-25, Table IV Click for Marking Year Book 2024-25

Scope: This note compares passenger-category shares from the first year shown in the Year Book table, 1960-61, with 2024-25. The principal structural change is the rise of suburban traffic and Mail/Express travel, alongside a steep decline in Second Class Ordinary traffic.

                                    Long term comparison

Category	1960-61	2024-25	Change in percentage	Direction
Second Class Ordinary	50.38%	16.30%	-34.08	Decrease
Second Class Mail/Express including Sleeper	6.02%	22.35%	+16.33	Increase
Upper Class	0.94%	4.96%	+4.02	Increase
Total Non-Suburban	57.34%	43.62%	-13.72	Decrease
Suburban all classes	42.66%	56.38%	+13.72	Increase

 

Category wise analysis

Second Class Ordinary

Its share fell from 50.38% to 16.30%, a decline of 34.08 percentage points. It was the largest single category in 1960-61, but its relative importance has reduced substantially.

Second Class Mail and Express

Its share rose from 6.02% to 22.35%, an increase of 16.33 percentage points. This category includes Sleeper Class and now forms the largest non-suburban category.

Upper Class

Its share increased from 0.94% to 4.96%, a gain of 4.02 percentage points. The 2024-25 share is more than five times the 1960-61 share.

Non-Suburban Total

Its total share declined from 57.34% to 43.62%. Within this segment, the passenger mix shifted away from Ordinary services towards Mail/Express, Sleeper and Upper Class travel.

Suburban all classes

Its share rose from 42.66% to 56.38%, an increase of 13.72 percentage points. It replaced non-suburban traffic as the dominant broad passenger segment.

 Trend across selected years

The complete series below provides the examination-oriented trend. Figures are percentages of the total number of passengers.

Year	Ordinary	Mail and Express	Upper Class	Non-Suburban Total	Suburban
1960-61	50.38	6.02	0.94	57.34	42.66
1970-71	42.82	6.38	0.66	49.86	50.14
1980-81	37.14	7.20	0.30	44.64	55.36
1990-91	31.70	9.26	0.49	41.45	58.55
2000-01	30.20	9.77	0.83	40.80	59.20
2010-11	31.95	13.67	1.30	46.92	53.08
2020-21	4.82	17.92	3.90	26.64	73.36
2023-24	10.63	27.09	4.62	42.34	57.66
2024-25	16.30	22.35	4.96	43.62	56.38

                Latest movement from 2023-24 to 2024-25

Category	2023-24	2024-25	Change in percentage
Second Class Ordinary	10.63%	16.30%	+5.67
Second Class Mail/Express including Sleeper	27.09%	22.35%	-4.74
Upper Class	4.62%	4.96%	+0.34
Total Non-Suburban	42.34%	43.62%	+1.28
Suburban all classes	57.66%	56.38%	-1.28

Key Points for MCQ:

• Largest category in 1960-61: Second Class Ordinary at 50.38%.

• Largest category in 2024-25: Suburban all classes at 56.38%.

• Largest long-term fall: Second Class Ordinary, down 34.08 percentage points.

• Second Class Mail/Express includes Sleeper Class.

• Non-suburban share fell by 13.72 percentage points, exactly matching the 13.72-point rise in suburban share.

• The table measures number of passengers, not passenger kilometres or passenger earnings.

• The exceptional 2020-21 distribution should be read in the context of COVID-19 disruption to regular passenger services.