One booth. Thirteen years of safe, transparent, and fair transport for thousands of daily rail passengers. Gone overnight.

Nagpur Railway Station's prepaid auto-rickshaw service has been shut down by the railway administration. And the passengers who depended on it most — women travelling alone, senior citizens, first-time visitors — are now stepping out of one of India's busiest railway junctions with nowhere safe to turn.

What the Prepaid Booth Actually Did for Nagpur

The prepaid auto service at Nagpur Junction was not just a convenience. It was a system. Passengers paid a fixed fare upfront. No haggling. No overcharging. No refusal of short-distance rides. No fear of being taken the long way around.

For a railway station that handles over one lakh passengers every day, that system mattered.

The railway administration declared the booth illegal — citing an encroachment on railway land. Auto drivers associated with the booth pushed back hard. They argued the service had operated within established rules for over a decade. But the preventive police notice was already issued, and the booth was sealed.

What Happens to Passengers Now

Step out of Nagpur Junction without a prepaid booth and you enter a free-for-all. Unregulated autos. No fixed fares. Overcharging is common. Refusal of short-distance trips is worse.

For passengers arriving late at night, the absence of a regulated service is not just inconvenient. It is a safety concern. Women, elderly travellers, and tourists carrying luggage are the most vulnerable. And they now have no structured system protecting them at the station exit.

This outcome was predictable. In fact, it was measurable.

The Data Science Gap Behind This Decision

A decision of this impact should never have been made without data. How many passengers used the prepaid booth daily? What percentage were women or senior citizens? What is the average fare difference between prepaid and unregulated autos at the same station? What do post-closure complaint volumes at the station look like?

None of this appears to have been analysed before the booth was sealed. The decision was made on the basis of land encroachment rules — without a passenger impact assessment in sight.

This is exactly the kind of governance gap that data science closes. Urban mobility analytics, passenger flow modelling, transport equity assessments — these are standard tools in cities that make infrastructure decisions based on evidence rather than paperwork.

Nagpur is smart enough to have the data. It needs professionals trained to use it.

Build a Career That Makes Cities Work Better

If the prepaid auto story has made one thing clear, it is that urban systems fail when data is ignored. And fixing those systems — in transport, healthcare, civic administration, and beyond — is exactly what data professionals do.

Enrolling in a Data Science Course at ExcelR Nagpur gives you the tools to step into those roles. Python, machine learning, SQL, data visualisation, and urban analytics — taught through real-world projects by working professionals.

Nagpur's job market is growing fast. MIHAN, the Samruddhi corridor, and the city's expanding private sector are all hiring data professionals right now. A Data Science Course in Nagpur at ExcelR connects your training directly to those opportunities — with dedicated placement support and industry-expert mentorship.

ExcelR Nagpur: Where Smart Careers Begin

ExcelR has been placing data science graduates in real roles across real companies for years. The outcomes speak through working professionals — not just brochures.

Nagpur's prepaid auto booth served passengers faithfully for thirteen years. The city deserves decision-making systems that serve them just as well.

Start building those systems today.

Name: ExcelR - Data Science, Data Analyst Course in Nagpur Address: Incube Coworking, Vijayanand Society, Plot no 20, Narendra Nagar, Somalwada, Nagpur, Maharashtra 440015 Phone Number: 063649 44954