Railways to come up with time table for freight trains

Facing complaints from container operators, Indian Railways have decided to come up with a time table, the first of its kind, for freight trains, giving an assured transit time.

Facing complaints from container operators, Indian Railways have decided to come up with a time table, the first of its kind, for freight trains, giving an assured transit time.

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However, the Railways will charge an extra fee for offering the assured transit time in freight service.

According to a new proposal, the container freight trains will run at an average speed of 100 kmph to reach their destinations faster.

"We are in the process of finalising a time table, specifically for container trains, the first of its kind exercise, as part of the proposed premier freight service," said a senior Rail Ministry official.

With the increase in speed and an assured track, the travel time for container freight will also be reduced.

Though the Railways publishes time tables regularly for passenger services, there is no time table for freight services.

The Railways used to have Quick Transit Service for freight operation long ago which has since then been discontinued.

The freight time table will have the route plan, travel time and the rates among other information.

"As per the proposed plan, Railways will charge a premium for the container freight service for reaching the destination within a guaranteed time. However, the special fee has not been decided yet," he said.