Have you ever tried booking train tickets online? If the seats aren’t vacant during ticket booking, different types of statuses are shown. For example, you may find RLWL, RAC, GNWL status while ticket booking. Some of the statuses are shown during train ticket booking, while some are shown after booking. One can check their train ticket status anytime for more information. Do you know what RAC status means in your train tickets? Read on to know everything about the RAC status in Indian Railway.
Understanding RAC status
Reservation Against Cancellation (RAC) is a ticket status in Indian Railway. If your seat is showing RAC status, it means you have a waiting list ticket. Your travel in the respective coach is confirmed by having a Reservation Against Cancellation ticket. However, it is not confirmed that you will get a full seat or sleeping status by having a Reservation Against Cancellation. If you have a RAC ticket, you can get on the mentioned seat on your train. However, you may not be alone on a RAC seat in a train. The Indian Railway often splits a RAC seat for two passengers. Since there will be two passengers on a RAC seat, you might not get the sleeping facility at night.
Let us understand RAC ticket status with an example. Consider a sleeper coach that has a hundred seats. Suppose that ten seats are reserved for RAC and 90 seats for sleeper class. Let us say you are the 91st person to book a ticket in the sleeper coach and get an RAC. Now, if someone from the first 90 cancels their seat, you will be the first to get a confirmed seat. Your ticket status will be changed from RAC to confirmed.
You will get a full sleeper berth in that coach to yourself. If no one cancels their sleeper seat before the train departure, you will get the allocated RAC seat. You may have to share a sleeper berth with another RAC ticket holder if you do not get a confirmed seat. Besides knowing the RAC full form, you should be aware of the working of a RAC ticket. Being informed is the best way to get the most out of Indian Railway services.
Is a RAC ticket better than a waitlisted ticket?
While booking train tickets, you may have come across GNWL or RLWL status. These are for wait-listed train tickets which aren’t better than a Reservation Against Cancellation ticket. A waitlisted ticket will only grant you an entry in the respective coach but not a seat. You have the right to enter the respective coach but cannot sit anywhere with a waitlisted ticket.
On the other hand, a RAC ticket will grant you at least a shared seat. Also, if anyone with a confirmed seat cancels their ticket, RAC status will be the first to be confirmed. Once all the RAC holders are provided with a confirmed ticket, waitlisted tickets will be considered. In all scenarios, you should take a RAC ticket over waitlisted tickets on Indian Railway.
When does RAC get confirmed?
Your RAC ticket can be converted into a confirmed ticket if someone cancels their ticket. Sometimes, people have cancelled their tickets, but your RAC isn’t confirmed. There is no need to panic as RAC status is updated after chart preparation in trains. The chart is prepared on the same day of train departure. Sometimes, RAC status is updated when a train has departed. In such a case, get in touch with your TT (Travelling Ticket Examiner) to know the status of your Reservation Against Cancellation ticket. If your RAC ticket is confirmed, TT will guide you. Start booking train tickets online right away!
