15-rake train on trial run

The Western Railway plans to introduce a 15-rake train on November 27 on a trial basis.

The Western Railway plans to introduce a 15-rake train on November 27 on a trial basis.

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“We are in process of converting 9-rake trains to 12-rake trains and we will also monitor the success of a 15-car train before implementing it,” said S Mudgerikar, chief public relation officer, CR. There are nearly 40 trains that have to be converted to 12-rake.

The Central Railway (CR) however, will first gauge the success of a 15-rake train before going ahead.

Union Railway minister Mamata Banerjee will flag off this 15-car train that will have 20 per cent more carrying capacity. This train, running 10-12 services in a day, will be on a trial run for two years before more such trains are added.

One of the new MRVC rakes would be dismantled and added to a 12-car train to convert it into a 15-car train. WR has already carried out a few trials, which they claim to be successful and have finished pre-test details like testing of tracks, signals and electricity supply.

In the long run, they plan to relocate signals and increase length of platforms to accommodate the 15-car train.

Plying a 15-rake local could pose problems for the frequency of trains plying before a 15-rake local. The 15-rake local will halt at Dadar, Andheri, Borivli, Vasai and Virar since these stations have longer platforms.

However, it would require adjustment in schedule of other trains. “There wouldn’t be problems in scheduling trains as clearance depends the signaling system. As soon as a 15-car train passes the stretch between two signals, it would immediately give clearance to the next train,” said S. Gupta, chief public relation officer, WR.