The Mumbai-Bengaluru Sleeper Vande Bharat Express was inaugurated on Sunday, offering an overnight rail travel option for passengers travelling between Pune, Mumbai and Bengaluru. The service is expected to benefit IT professionals, employees and business travellers who frequently commute between these cities.
The inaugural run was flagged off from Shri M Visvesvaraya Terminal Bengaluru (SMVT) at 12.15 pm in the presence of Union Railway Minister Ashwini Vaishnaw and other dignitaries. The inaugural special train, numbered 06503, reached Mumbai’s Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj Terminus (CSMT) at 6.15 am the following day.
Regular services will operate under train numbers 27651 and 27652. Train 27651 will leave Mumbai at 8.10 pm on 6 days a week, except Tuesdays, and reach SMVT Bengaluru at noon the following day. In the return direction, train 27652 will depart Bengaluru at 7.45 pm on 6 days a week, except Mondays, from November 3 and reach CSMT at 11.55 am the next day.
For the Bengaluru–Mumbai journey, the train will halt at Anantapur (10.28 pm), Guntakal (11.20 pm), Raichur (1.03 am), Yadgir (1.43 am), Kalaburagi (3.08 am), Solapur (4.20 am), Pune (8 am) and Kalyan (10.42 am).
On the return journey, it will halt at Kalyan (8.48 pm), Pune (11.40 pm), Solapur (3 am), Kalaburagi (4.13 am), Yadgir (5.08 am), Raichur (6.03 am), Guntakal (7.30 am) and Anantapur (8.38 am).
{{/usCountry}}On the return journey, it will halt at Kalyan (8.48 pm), Pune (11.40 pm), Solapur (3 am), Kalaburagi (4.13 am), Yadgir (5.08 am), Raichur (6.03 am), Guntakal (7.30 am) and Anantapur (8.38 am).
{{/usCountry}}Kshitij Khandekar, a regular passenger, said, “I frequently travel between Pune and Bengaluru for work. Flights can be expensive, while bus journeys are often tiring. An overnight Vande Bharat with sleeper facilities and a halt at Pune will provide a comfortable alternative. It will be particularly useful for IT professionals who regularly travel between these two cities.”
The train has 16 coaches, comprising one AC first class coach, four AC two-tier coaches and 11 AC three-tier coaches.
It is the second such train to be introduced in the country, following the Howrah-Kamakhya Sleeper Vande Bharat Express. It is also the first Sleeper Vande Bharat service to originate and terminate in Maharashtra and Karnataka.