20-coach Vande Bharat to undergo trial run on Mumbai-Ahmedabad route

A 20-coach Vande Bharat train will undergo a trial run on the Mumbai-Ahmedabad-Delhi route with a top speed of 130 kmph, aiming for semi-high-speed operations

Mumbai: A 20-coach Vande Bharat train will undergo a trial run on the Ahmedabad-Vadodara-Mumbai Central route on August 9. With the top speed capped at 130 kmph, the trial run is a precursor to the long-term plan of operating semi-high-speed Vande Bharat trains on the Mumbai-Ahmedabad-Delhi route, said sources.

The trial run of the 20-coach train will be helmed by the Indian Railway’s Research, Design and Standards Organisation (RDSO) along with senior railway engineers from different departments (Photo by Vijay Bate/HT Photo) (HT PHOTO)

At present, the Indian Railways operates eight-coach and 16-coach Vande Bharat trains. The trial run of the 20-coach train will be helmed by the Indian Railway’s Research, Design and Standards Organisation (RDSO) along with senior railway engineers from different departments. The train that will be used for the trial left Lucknow on August 5 and arrived at Ahmedabad on August 6. “On August 7-8, we will install necessary equipment inside the coaches for oscillation trials. The equipment will be used for studying various parameters during the trial run,” said an official from Western Railway (WR).

On Friday, the Vande Bharat train will depart Ahmedabad at 7am and it is expected to reach Mumbai Central at around 11am. “The rake has undergone minor technical changes that will not be visible to passengers. The nose of the train is also likely to be chipped,” said another railway official. During the trial run, the train will slow down and run at permitted speeds wherever restrictions are in place, officials added. Following the trial, the empty 20-coach rake will be hauled back to Ahmedabad on August 9 itself and sent to Lucknow the following day.

On April 11, HT had reported that Vande Bharat trains were likely to undergo trials at 160 kmph on the Mumbai-Ahmedabad route. Safety barriers have been installed along the route in preparation for the trial, in addition to engineering enhancements such as the strengthening of over 120 bridge approaches using geocells, rehabilitation of an additional 138 bridges and replacement of seven bridges with ballasted decks. The railways has also straightened 134 curvatures along the route, increased the capacity of concrete sleepers on which rail tracks are laid, and cushioned tracks with 300mm ballast instead of the regular 250mm.

The upgrade in speeds from the current 120-130 kmph to 160 kmph will help reduce the 5.25 -hour journey time between Mumbai and Ahmedabad by at least 45-60 minutes. The Mumbai-Surat-Vadodara-Delhi corridor is also poised for an upgrade to 160 kmph. The estimated cost of the project within Western Railway’s jurisdiction stands at ₹3,959 crore while the overall budget for the route till Delhi is ₹10,000 crore.

At present, more than 50 trains ply between Mumbai and Ahmedabad including trains like Vande Bharat, Tejas, and Shatabdi Express. These trains run at 100 kmph on the Mumbai Central-Borivali stretch, 110 kmph on the Borivali to Virar stretch and higher speeds between Virar and Ahmedabad.

The railways is trying to expedite train journeys on the 1,479-km Delhi-Mumbai corridor and the 1,525-km Delhi-Howrah corridor. In the Mumbai-Delhi route, nearly 50% of the total 1,379 route kilometres falls under Western Railways, while the rest is under the West Central Railways and Northern Railway.