Mumbai, July 8 -- Within a fortnight, the Western Railways' ticket checking squads are to be expanded to cover more AC local trains. From May 23, when the initiative was launched, till July 2 the squads have caught over 6,899 ticketless commuters and collected fines adding up to Rs.20.97 lakh. Every day, a team of 15 ticket checking squads catches more than 168 commuters travelling without valid tickets or season passes inside the air-conditioned (AC) local trains on the Western Railway (WR). This squad works an average of 7-9 hours per day, including the peak hours in the morning and evening. A WR official said that the squad caught 564 ticketless commuters in the past week. The ticket checking staff boarded the train from Virar or Borivali in the morning peak hours, and passengers with tickets welcomed the initiative, the official added. The WR operates 1,406 services daily, of which 109 services are of AC locals. Officials said that the 15 member ticket checking squad was launched after 10% of the 40-50 daily AC WR local trains were being delayed by an average of 8-12 mins by crowds. The AC locals' punctuality was disrupted when passengers hanging from footboards would stop the doors from shutting and delay the train's departure. "Those without tickets in AC locals are a menace," said Kailash Verma, president Maharashtra Railway Commuters Council, welcoming the move....