E-Paper
Gorakhpur-Lucknow Vande Bharat to soon get extended to Prayagraj; in-principle nod received
The proposed schedule outlines that the Vande Bharat Express will depart from Lucknow at 10:35 am after arriving from Gorakhpur, reaching Prayagraj at 1:35 pm.
PRAYAGRAJ: The long wait for a superfast train between Prayagraj and Lucknow is finally set to get over. The Prayagraj division of the North Central Railway (NCR) has received ‘in-principle approval’ from the Railway Board to extend the run of Vande Bharat Express, currently running between Gorakhpur and Lucknow, till Prayagraj Junction, according to railway officials.
The proposed schedule outlines that the Vande Bharat Express will depart from Lucknow at 10:35 am after arriving from Gorakhpur, reaching Prayagraj at 1:35 pm. On its return journey, the train will leave Prayagraj at 3:15 pm and arrive in Lucknow at 6:15 pm. For the onward journey, the train will depart from Lucknow at 6:30 pm, reaching Gorakhpur at 10:40 pm, approximately 40 minutes earlier than its current arrival time.
The commencement date of the extended route will be determined at the zonal level. Additionally, the train will make a brief stop at Rae Bareli railway station during its run. Although the proposed schedule does not specify the stoppage duration at Rae Bareli station, this detail will be finalized soon. The decision regarding the start date of the extended route operation will be made within a week at the zonal level, officials noted.
Himanshu Shekhar Upadhyay, Chief Public Relations Officer (CPRO) of NCR, stated, “We have received in-principle approval to extend the run of Vande Bharat Express between Gorakhpur and Lucknow to Prayagraj Junction, and the train will commence its operation on the extended route soon.”
Currently, the Intercity Express takes 4.05 hours for the journey from Prayagraj to Lucknow, while other trains such as Bareilly-Prayagraj, Ganga Gomti Express, and Nauchandi Express take 4.10 hours. The extended run of Vande Bharat Express is expected to save passengers approximately an hour of travel time between Prayagraj and Lucknow.
