Eid Ticket Rush Sparks 9.3M Hits in 30 Minutes
- Tickets sold out in just 3 seconds
- 6 million hits in 30 minutes in the western zone
- 3.3 million hits in 30 minutes in the eastern zone
- Standing tickets will go on sale two hours before departure
Collected Photo
Railway authorities began advance train ticket sales on Wednesday ahead of Eid-ul-Azha. On the first day, 31,240 seats were released for online booking. Within the first 30 minutes, the system recorded 9.3 million hits as passengers rushed to secure Eid tickets.
Ticket sales for the western zone began at 8 a.m. According to officials, the system received 6 million hits within the first 30 minutes for western zone tickets. In the eastern zone, where sales started at 2 p.m., another 3.3 million hits were recorded in the first half hour.
Railway data shows that a total of 31,240 seats have been allocated across 43 trains for this Eid. Of these, 15,266 seats are in the western zone and 15,974 in the eastern zone. In the western zone, all tickets sold out within two and a half hours of the sale opening. However, only 913 tickets remained available on the online platform just 30 minutes into the sale, meaning 94% of tickets were sold within that time. In the eastern zone, 3,666 tickets remained after the first 30 minutes, indicating that 77% of tickets were sold in that period.
The ticket sale process also generated widespread discussion on social media. In railway fan forums, some users celebrated successfully securing tickets, while others expressed frustration over not getting any. One user wrote, “The first day of Eid travel tickets sold out in just three seconds. I couldn’t get one. I want to see in the comments who actually managed to get tickets.”
Railway officials said demand for tickets in the northwestern region remains the highest during Eid travel every year. Many passengers failed to secure tickets despite long attempts online. They added that due to limited seat availability compared to demand, it was not possible to accommodate everyone.
According to the railway’s plan, tickets for travel on May 24 will be sold tomorrow, Thursday. Each passenger is allowed to purchase tickets only once for advance Eid travel, with a maximum limit of four tickets per transaction. Refunds will not be permitted for advance tickets. Standing tickets will be available, but sales will begin two hours before train departure.
