A new entrance

I've always entered the Egmore ('Chennai Egmore') railway station from the east and had thought it was the only way to get in. It was a surprise to see that the western side of the station also has an entryway; for a moment, I thought this was also of the same vintage as the other side - the builders have managed a reasonably good copy of the architecture - but the lack of significant activity around this side convinced me that it was a much more recent additon, awaiting a formal inauguration.

However, I later learnt that this entrance was officially opened two years ago, in June 2006. So why the lack of crowds? Now, Egmore used to be a station where you could drive up in a taxi right on to the platform, almost to your compartment. Even today, the shortest distance from Platform 1 to the car park is only 200 m or so; with that kind of convenience on the eastern side, it will lake a while longer for people to get used to the 'long haul' entry from the west, I guess!