Coronavirus: India's busiest rail network is being shut down

[John Ashworth]

Coronavirus: Why India's busiest rail network is being shut down

One of the world's busiest urban rail systems will be shut down for ordinary commuters from Monday morning to prevent the spread of coronavirus infection in Mumbai, one of India's most populous cities. Only government workers in "essential services" will be allowed to travel on a truncated service...

Eight million people take Mumbai's crowded suburban train network every day. Packed to nearly three times its capacity, this is one of the busiest railway systems in the world... The 66-year-old network carries 60,000 passengers per km per day, the highest among all the leading commuter rail systems in the world...