More speed trials await Spanish-made Talgo train
The Spanish-make Talgo train will be made to take a few more speed trials between Delhi-Mumbai to ascertain the technical parameters while it is negotiating curves.
The Spanish-make Talgo train will be made to take a few more speed trials between Delhi-Mumbai to ascertain the technical parameters while it is negotiating curves.
These speed trials likely to be conducted at various speeds, going upto 150 kilometres per hour (kmph). The Western Railway chief spokesperson Ravinder Bhakar said that railway board is yet to fix a date for the trials.
According to the original speed trial schedule between the two cities, the railway authorities had planned total four trials — two at 130kmph, one at 140 kmph and one at 150kmph. But keeping the last trial at 150kmph pending, it abruptly conducted one more trial at 130kmph.
For the trial run at 130kmph, the Talgo train left Delhi on Friday at 2.50pm. The high-speed train was expected to reach Mumbai Central station on Saturday at 3.32am, but it reached the station at 4.08am, said sources.
The train took 36 minutes more than its expected travel time. The total travelling time was clocked at 13 hours and 17 minutes, while the average speed was 102 kmph. Sources from the Western Railway said that cattle run over in Ratlam division and a single failure in Mumbai division was responsible for delay.
Presently, the Rajdhani Express is the fastest train on Delhi-Mumbai route. It takes about 15.5 hours for the train to cover the distance between the two cities.
Using high-speed trains like the Talgo is in accordance to Railway minister Suresh Prabhu’s promise to cut down travel time between Mumbai to Delhi to 12 hours.