In Pune, passengers choosing to travel by train, especially during festivals, are concerned about the overcrowding that occurs when additional general second-class coaches are added, making the commute uncomfortable. Arun Kumar Mishra, a senior citizen traveling from Pune to Darbhanga in Bihar, shared his experience of encountering unauthorized passengers in his sleeper-class compartment. Mishra highlighted an incident where passengers locked themselves in the toilet and caused a delay in the journey. Despite reporting the issue to the Train Ticket Examiner (TTE), fines were collected instead of enforcing deboarding. Following Mishra's complaint to Rail Madad, the unauthorized passengers were removed at Ahmednagar station. With the Pune rail division introducing special trains for the festive season, passengers holding reserved tickets are concerned about losing their berths to those traveling without tickets. The increase in general second-class coaches in trains is enabling passengers without tickets to occupy reserved compartments, creating challenges for ticket-checking staff to manage the rush effectively. Passengers have expressed frustration over the common practice of unauthorized passengers boarding trains."I recently traveled on the Sinhagad Express in a reserved compartment and noticed several passengers without tickets. One individual even pretended to be a railway employee to claim a seat. Rajesh Doshi, a Pune resident and regular train commuter, raised concerns about the improper handling of the situation. Sagar Jadhav, who journeyed on the Ahmedabad-Pune Duronto Express last week, shared a similar experience of the coach being overcrowded, with some passengers resorting to sitting on the floor despite having reserved seats.

The issue of overcrowding extends beyond trains to platforms, causing further discomfort for travelers. In April, officials from the Pune rail division discussed plans to establish temporary waiting sheds on the premises to improve crowd management and prevent overcrowding on the platforms. Passengers have lamented the inadequate seating, limited water supply, and absence of proper waiting areas at the station, resulting in dangerously crowded platforms that could potentially lead to stampedes."