Indian Railways Introduces New Rule On Waiting Tickets To Curb Overcrowding In Trains. What We Know

New Delhi: Good news for all the rail commuters: Indian Railways is soon to scrap the 2013 waiting list ticket limits and introduce a uniform rule that caps waiting list tickets at 25% of the total berth capacity in each coach. This move aims primarily to reduce overcrowding and improve passenger comfort.

Train Waiting Tickets: Old vs New System     

Under the Indian Railways 2013 guidelines, the waiting list limits were fixed per class:

• AC First Class: 30 tickets
• AC 2-Tier: 100 tickets
• AC 3-Tier: 300 tickets
• Sleeper Class: 400 tickets1

This often led to overbooking and chaos, especially during peak seasons, with unconfirmed passengers boarding reserved coaches.

What's New Waiting Ticket Rules?
As per the new proposed Indian Railways rule, the waiting list will be capped at 25% of the available berths in each coach, after accounting for reserved quotas (senior citizens, women, differently-abled, etc.).

For example, if a Sleeper coach has 400 berths available for booking, only 100 waiting list tickets will be issued at maximum.

This rule applies across all classes—Sleeper, AC 3-Tier, AC 2-Tier, AC First Class, and Chair Car—and includes Tatkal and remote-location bookings.

Benefits of New Rule
It reduces uncertainty for passengers holding waitlisted tickets. It also minimises overcrowding in reserved coaches that often troubles reserved passengers.

New rule will also help authorities to control crowd at stations, especially during festivals and holidays.

New waiting ticket rule will be implemented systematically with data showing 20–25% of waiting tickets typically get confirmed before final chart preparation.