The obscure and defunct Getahetta railway station, boasting a sleek, narrow gauge train with plush first-class accommodation, takes centre stage in the gripping climax of the 1952 British film, The Planter’s Wife. This tale of a rubber planter and his wife battling communist insurgents during the Malayan Emergency brings to life the splendour of the KV line. Not only does The Planter’s Wife showcase the allure of the KV line, but it is also prominently featured in other international films such as Midnight’s Children (Castle street section) and The Common Man (a train moving across the Royal Colombo Golf Club greens). In David Lean’s masterpiece The Bridge on the River Kwai, a KV line engine and carriages dramatically plunge into the Kelani River, cementing its place as the railway line that has captured the hearts and imaginations of moviegoers like no other.
Interestingly, when the British built the KV line in 1900, initially from the Maradana railway station to Yatiyanthota via Avissawella, romanticism would have been the last thing in their minds; they built the line for the mundane purpose of transporting processed rubber to Colombo. Later, the line was branched off at Avissawella and extended up to Opanayaka via Ratnapura (completed in 1912). In the same period, another narrow gauge (2 feet 6 inches) line was built from Nanuoya station to Ragala via Nuwara Eliya. This was known as Udupussellawa (UP) Railway.
The British, known for their meticulous style in building infrastructure projects, appear to have approached the construction of some railway lines in a haphazard manner. The Eastern line, for example, could have been built closer to the cultural towns of Polonnaruwa and Sigiriya, which were already renowned at the time of construction. The Southern line could have extended to reach Hambantota, and the Badulla line could have connected with Nuwara Eliya instead of a separate narrow gauge line. Furthermore, the KV line could have been broad gauge to serve as an extension to other lines ending in Colombo. It could then have been connected to the main Badulla line, at some point, creating an alternative route from Colombo to Kandy and Badulla.
It may be possible that the British were not concerned about the long-term impact of their decisions. Their immediate priorities may have been the transportation of tea (in the case of the UP line) and rubber (KV line). These lines may have been intended to be temporary, with the expectation that alternative modes of transportation would become available in the future. They were not primarily intended for passenger traffic too.
Despite their possible short-term focus, the UP and KV lines were successful for a few decades. For example, in 1920, five goods trains and eleven mixed trains were operating on the UP line, and there was even a luxury compartment for the Governor of Ceylon. The opulence of the railway stations, such as Karawanella (now a school building), Ruwanwella (now a police station), Puvakpitiya (the only railway station in Sri Lanka that is right-angled to the track), and Nuwara Eliya (now a bus stand), demonstrate the grandeur of these two narrow gauge lines.
However, the change came more rapidly than expected. By the 1940s, roads had been built and trucks imported, leading to a quicker and more convenient mode of transportation for goods. This gradually led to a decrease in demand for rail transport, resulting in losses for both the UP and KV lines. By 1940, passenger services were withdrawn on the UP line, and by 1942, the tracks were gone. The same year marked the removal of the railway line between Avissawella and Yatiyanthota, and trains beyond Avissawella became increasingly rare until they eventually stopped, leading to the removal of the tracks in 1973.
Kelani Valley 2.0 began, in the early 1990s, with President Premadasa deciding to salvage whatever the remnants. By then, the line ran only one train up to Homagama. Replacing the tracks beyond Avissawella was not feasible, as unauthorized constructions had sprouted along the way. So the railways did the next best they could. They replaced the remaining tracks with a broad gauge so other trains could run between Colombo and Avissawella. That was all they did. Over 18,000 commuters, they say, use the office trains daily to reach Colombo in the mornings and return after work. Eight trains run one way to Colombo every morning between 05:26 and 08:10. The process is in the opposite direction in the afternoons. They may follow Tyer’s tablet system only as a formality, as the flow, at one time, is only one way (Tyer’s signalling system works efficiently with a two-way flow). Nobody uses trains for leisure travel or goods transport.
I am not sure about the usage beyond Homagama. I have no data, but YouTube has several vlogs covering this section. The trains do not look crowded. Also, there seem to be hardly any passengers either getting in or off at most stations, about half of them categorized as sub-stations. This section is scenic, of course, but that is of no use unless it generates economic value.
Interestingly, the High-Level Road (aka A4), which runs parallel to this line, is one of the most congested traffic corridors reaching Colombo. Public transport vehicles are overcrowded, and trucks carrying raw materials from and finished goods to Colombo and other parts of the island from the factories abundant in and around the Seetawaka area also contribute to the congestion. Two obvious questions are: can some passenger and goods traffic be diverted to rail easing the congestion on the A4? What prevents the KV line from serving the community better and in a more economical way?
The complexities of the KV line are too complex. It has had an issue with speed, perhaps since its inception. What could you expect from a design 120+ years old? The track has too many curves. The British engineers working on the line perhaps did not want to demolish too many structures for its construction. Then the railway line crosses too many main roads. Believe it or not, there are more than 50 rail crossings from Colombo to Homagama. The line also runs through areas with houses built too near to the track (Narahenpita and Nugegoda). At Maharagama, it runs through a bazaar. All these factors contribute to the reduction in speed in diverse ways. Too frequent trains, in turn, increases vehicular traffic. So there is a limit to the number of trains during peak hours.
Local pundits have offered a solution that prima facie looks brilliant. Elevate the tracks for 23 km from Colombo to Homagama. The idea might have come from what the proponents have observed in other countries. Singapore, Thailand and Malaysia notably run MRT systems on elevated tracks. Every major city in India now has a half-developed MRT system. Bangladesh is the new girl in the club. However, there has not been a ground track in all these cases. They might have found the only way to develop transport across densely populated areas is to construct elevated tracks (and stations) at considerable cost.
With a well-planned and integrated approach, the kv line can serve the country better than it ever did, even during the British administration
Will elevation solve the issues with Kelani Valley? It could solve only the problem of crossing the bazaar, but not the ones with curves. “The recommended elevated trace is also following the ground trace with all the existing sharp curves,” says Priyal De Silva, former General Manager of Sri Lanka Railways cum Past President Institution of Engineers, Sri Lanka. He suggests that the new solution may create more problems than it solves. “The new infrastructure should be able to be utilized for any future extensions beyond Avissawella and should be maintenance-friendly and user-friendly. The proposal requires the provision of escalators and elevators for stations in the elevated sections required to be maintained. If not, the general public will suffer a 7m climb (the height of a two-storeyed building) to the station platform. Such issues need addressing (for this to succeed).” De Silva is uncertain if elevation will solve the problem of the crossings because the elevated platform must be high enough to accommodate every conceivable type of road vehicle at the underpass.
Meanwhile, Dr Lalithasiri Gunaruwan, an economist cum former Secretary to the Ministry of Transport, has found that even a train on the elevated tracks will save only 5 minutes of travel time. So elevation at a substantial investment will serve hardly any purpose. Sorry, a debt-ridden country has to be extra cautious about its investments.
Do we have any alternative solutions? Yes, of course! One option is to renovate the tracks in their current form. This would involve removing unauthorized buildings alongside the tracks and making alterations to avoid some of the sharp curves, which would be a more cost-effective solution than elevation. Another possibility is to modernize the stations and provide more facilities to the passengers. Why not allow convenience stores and maybe bookshops at railway stations, as they do elsewhere? Additionally, a strategy employed by the Indian Railways for a long time, which involves using long trains that can accommodate more passengers, could be adopted to increase capacity without adding to vehicular traffic.
It is also worth considering the use of goods trains at night; the track was never used for this purpose, even during the British era. Moreover, with the increasing number of offices and factories in the area, it may be beneficial to carry office traffic towards Homagama (currently, the first train in the day towards Homagama starts at 14:00 from Colombo; there are no morning trains). That would alleviate strain on the roads, allowing trains to take a larger share of the traffic. However, this would require changes to the line, such as a new signalling system, as the current tablet system is outdated.
Finally, it is crucial to note that the KV line is part of a network of train systems connecting four train corridors to and from Colombo. Out of the five main traffic corridors in Colombo, only the Colombo Kaduwela route is not served by trains. To improve the traffic conditions, the development of the KV line must align with the development of the entire train system within Colombo and the suburbs. The transformation should be holistic, not piecemeal, as a single elevated line would not provide a comprehensive solution. With a well-planned and integrated approach, the KV line can serve the country better than it ever did, even during the British administration.