Mumbai-Pune train Deccan Queen to get new, improved coaches by year-end

LHB coaches are lighter, have higher passenger capacity and better speed. They also have superior braking features and are equipped with anti-collision technology.

The Deccan Queen, which operates between Mumbai and Pune, will soon get new coaches with better safety features. Central Railway (CR) plans to replace the existing coaches with new ones manufactured by German firm Linke-Hofmann-Busch (LHB) by the end of the year.

The new coaches will be manufactured by German firm Linke-Hofmann-Busch. (HT file)

It has also announced plans to introduce LHB coaches in the Indrayani Express by August this year.

Compared to the existing coaches, manufactured by the Integral Coach Factory (ICF), LHB coaches are lighter, with a higher passenger capacity and speed. The coaches also have superior braking features and are equipped with anti-collision technology, which prevent them from crashing into each other in case of an accident.

According to a senior CR official, this is part of a plan to replace coaches of all outstation trains. “We plan to convert all outstation train coaches to LHB coaches. We will do this phase-wise, but start with the Deccan Queen,” he said.

However, the plan may face a slight hiccup, given that LHB coaches have pantries but don’t have dining cars. “As the Deccan Queen is the only train operated by the Indian Railways that has a dining car, we have written to the railway board to accommodate it in the new coaches,” said a zonal railway official.

Last year, the CR had refurbished coaches of the Deccan Queen, as part of project Utkrisht. During the revamp project, the railways replaced torn seats, installed fire extinguishers, dustbins and put up Braille signs.