Vande Bharat Express | |
Color: | 28457D |
Color2: | FF7220 |
Type: | Inter-city semi-high-speed rail |
Status: | Active |
Predecessor: | Shatabdi Express |
Line Used: | 51 |
Class: | AC Chair Car (C) AC Executive Class (E) |
Catering: | On-board catering |
Observation: | Wide windows |
Baggage: | Overhead racks |
Stock: | Vande Bharat (trainset) |
Speed: | (maximum) [1] [2] (average) |
Trainlength: | (16 coaches) (8 coaches) (20 coaches) (Under trials) |
Electrification: | 25 kV 50 Hz AC Overhead line |
Gauge: | broad gauge |
Vande Bharat Express is a medium-distance superfast express service operated by Indian Railways. It is a reserved, air-conditioned chair car service connecting cities that are less than apart or take less than ten hours to travel with existing services. The train was a part of 'Make in India' initiative by the government and entered commercial service on 15 February 2019.[3]
The trainsets are self-propelling Electric Multiple Units (EMU)s with eight or sixteen coaches. The trainset was designed and manufactured by Integral Coach Factory in Chennai. Introduced in 2018, the trainsets achieved semi-high speeds of on trials, and crossed target trial speed of on trials, but the maximum operational speed is which is achieved by the Rani Kamalapati (Habibganj)–Hazrat Nizamuddin Vande Bharat Express and Hazrat Nizamuddin-Khajuraho Vande Bharat Express on the TughlakabadAgra section.
In 1960, the Railway Board of India commissioned a study to increase the speed of its trains, which was restricted to on the existent broad gauge lines.[4] A target of with an intermediate stage of was set for passenger trains. Research Design and Standards Organisation (RDSO) started work on the same and using the coaches were manufactured by the Integral Coach Factory (ICF) at Madras and hauled by diesel locomotives, Rajdhani Express capable of reaching speeds of up to were introduced in 1969.[5] [6] With the introduction of WAP-1 electric locomotives, Shatabdi Express introduced in 1988, were capable of running at a maximum speed of .[7] [8] [9]
From the late 1990s, the ICF coaches were replaced by safer and newer LHB coaches designed by Linke-Hofmann-Busch of Germany.[10] [11] In December 2009, the Ministry of Railways of Government of India envisaged the implementation of high-speed rail projects to provide services at with the up-gradation of existing tracks, construction of new lines and introduction of high speed trainsets.[12] [13] In 2014, proposals were made to introduce semi-high-speed services between major cities.[14] In 2016, Gatimaan Express was inaugurated which achieved speeds of between Delhi and Agra.[15]
In June 2016, Indian Railways sought Requests For Qualification (RFQ) to jointly manufacture five thousand Electric Multiple Unit (EMU) sets with interested international and domestic parties.[16] In 2015, Talgo conducted trial runs on the MumbaiDelhi line, completing the journey in ten hours, almost six hours quicker than the existing fastest train with an average speed of . There were significant issues such as the adaptation of rakes, maintenance, higher costs and robustness.[17] Indian Railways could not reach a direct agreement and the deal never materialised.[18]
After foreign proposals for introducing semi-high-speed trains were unsuccessful, the Make in India campaign fuelled the cause for developing the next generation EMU semi-high-speed trainsets locally. ICF worked on an indigenous design, which was constructed at the Integral Coach Factory.[19] These trainsets known as Train 18 initially, were introduced in 2018 and reached speeds of up to in trials.[20] These trainsets were later renamed to Vande Bharat.[21]
On 15 February 2019, the first Vande Bharat Express between New Delhi and Varanasi was flagged off at the New Delhi railway station by Prime Minister Narendra Modi.[22] [23] The train covered a distance of in 8 hours at an average speed of and reduced the existing travel time along the route by 15%.[24] In October 2019, the second service was launched between New Delhi and Katra.[25]
After the inauguration of the first two services, Indian Railways stopped production of new trainsets owing to internal issues.[26] In 2019, Indian Railways resumed tenders for the production of new sets with more time provided to come up with the cheapest bid for the upgrades required.[27] The second generation trainsets entered service on 30 September 2022.[28] Since Vande Bharat trains provide fast service across short-distances, similar to the Shatabdi Express, the trains will eventually replace the existing Shatabdis. As of 2023, ICF is developing long-distance version of the trainset with sleeper cars.[29]
The country has set a target of having 4,500 Vande Bharat trains by 2047.[30]
Vande Bharat Express uses Electric Multiple Unit (EMU) trainsets manufactured by Integral Coach Factory in Chennai.[31] The trainsets have sixteen or eight chair cars.[32] A standard sixteen car rake consists of two Driving Trailer Coaches, one each on every end along with two non-driver trailer coaches, four trailer coaches with pantographs and eight motor coaches.[33] A second generation sixteen car trainset weighs 392 tonnes and costs .[34] [35] The chassis of a coach is long, and is made of stainless steel.[36]
During its trial runs, the trainsets had clocked speeds of up to with an acceleration of in 52 seconds.[37] [20] The operational speed is limited due to track restrictions, halts and traffic congestion. The maximum operational speed of is achieved by the Rani Kamalapati (Habibganj)–Hazrat Nizamuddin Vande Bharat Express and Hazrat Nizamuddin-Khajuraho Vande Bharat Express on the TughlakabadAgra section.[38]
The train has two classes of accommodation with the AC Executive Class being the premium class and the AC chair being the other. The executive class coach can seat 52 passengers and is equipped with rotating seats in a 2x2 configuration.[39] The chair car coaches can seat 78 passengers per coach (44 in first and last coaches) and are equipped with retractable seats in 2x3 configuration.[40] The coaches are fully air conditioned and equipped with electric outlets, reading lights, CCTV cameras, automatic doors, bio-vacuum toilets, Sensor-based water taps and Passenger information system.[41] The coaches have wider windows with roller blinds and overhead racks for luggage.[42] The service offers onboard catering with both vegetarian and non-vegetarian meal options included in the fare as standard.[43]
, 51 Vande Bharat trains are in service, which includes seventeen 16-car services and thirty-four 8-car services.
Service | Train number | Zone | Halts | Cars | Frequency | Distance | Travel time | Speed | Inaugural run | |||
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Maximum | Average | |||||||||||
1 | New Delhi–Varanasi | 22436/22435 | NR | 2 | 16 | Except Thu | 08h 00m | 15 February 2019 | [44] | |||
2 | New Delhi–SMVD Katra | 22439/22440 | NR | 4 | 16 | Except Tue | 08h 05m | 3 October 2019 | [45] | |||
3 | Mumbai Central–Gandhinagar Capital | 20901/20902 | WR | 5 | 16 | Except Wed | 06h 25m | 30 September 2022 | [46] [47] | |||
4 | New Delhi–Amb Andaura | 22447/22448 | NR | 4 | 16 | Except Tue | 05h 15m | 13 October 2022 | [48] | |||
5 | MGR Chennai Central–Mysuru | 20607/20608 | SR | 2 | 16 | Except Wed | 06h 30m | 11 November 2022 | [49] | |||
6 | Bilaspur–Nagpur | 20825/20826 | SECR | 5 | 8 | Except Sat | 05h 30m | 11 December 2022 | [50] [51] | |||
7 | Howrah–New Jalpaiguri | 22301/22302 | ER | 3 | 16 | Except Wed | 07h 30m | 30 December 2022 | [52] | |||
8 | Visakhapatnam–Secunderabad | 20833/20834 | ECoR | 5 | 16 | Except Sun | 08h 30m | 15 January 2023 | [53] | |||
9 | Mumbai CSMT–Solapur | 22225/22226 | CR | 5 | 16 | Except Wed (22225)Except Thu (22226) | 06h 35m | 10 February 2023 | [54] [55] | |||
10 | Mumbai CSMT–Sainagar Shirdi | 22223/22224 | CR | 4 | 16 | Except Tue | 05h 10m | [56] [57] | ||||
11 | Rani Kamalapati (Habibganj)–Hazrat Nizamuddin | 20171/20172 | WCR | 3 | 16 | Except Sat | 07h 36m | 1 April 2023 | [58] [59] | |||
12 | Secunderabad–Tirupati | 20701/20702 | SCR | 5 | 16 | Except Tue | 08h 20m | 8 April 2023 | [60] [61] | |||
13 | MGR Chennai Central–Coimbatore | 20643/20644 | SR | 3 | 8 | Except Wed | 06h 00m | [62] | ||||
14 | Ajmer–Chandigarh | 20977/20978 | NWR | 7 | 16 | Except Wed | 08h 25m | 12 April 2023 | [63] [64] | |||
15 | Kasaragod–Thiruvananthapuram | 20633/20634 | SR | 8 | 16 | Except Thu | 08h 10m | 25 April 2023 | [65] [66] | |||
16 | Howrah–Puri | 22895/22896 | SER | 7 | 16 | Except Thu | 06h 25m | 18 May 2023 | [67] [68] | |||
17 | Dehradun–Anand Vihar Terminal | 22458/22457 | NR | 6 | 8 | Except Wed | 04h 45m | 25 May 2023 | [69] [70] | |||
18 | New Jalpaiguri–Guwahati | 22227/22228 | NFR | 5 | 8 | Except Tue | 05h 30m | 29 May 2023 | [71] [72] | |||
19 | Mumbai CSMT–Madgaon | 22229/22230 | CR | 7 | 8 | Except Fri | 07h 45m | 27 June 2023 | [73] [74] | |||
20 | Patna–Ranchi | 22349/22350 | ECR | 6 | 8 | Except Tue | 06h 00m | [75] | ||||
21 | KSR Bengaluru–Dharwad | 20661/20662 | SWR | 3 | 8 | Except Tue | 06h 25m | [76] [77] | ||||
22 | Rani Kamalapati (Habibganj)–Rewa | 20173/20174 | WCR | 8 | 8 | Except Tue | 08h 00m | [78] | ||||
23 | Indore–Nagpur | 20911/20912 | WR | 4 | 8 | Except Sun | 08h 20m | [79] | ||||
24 | Jodhpur–Sabarmati (Ahmedabad) | 12461/12462 | NWR | 5 | 8 | Except Tue | 06h 00m | 7 July 2023 | [80] [81] | |||
25 | Gorakhpur–Prayagraj (Allahabad) | 22549/22550 | NER | 4 | 8 | Except Sat | 07h 30m | [82] [83] | ||||
26 | Udaipur City–Jaipur | 20979/20980 | NWR | 7 | 8 | Except Tue | 06h 20m | 24 September 2023 | [84] [85] | |||
27 | MGR Chennai Central–Vijayawada | 20677/20678 | SR | 4 | 8 | Except Tue | 06h 40m | [86] | ||||
28 | Chennai Egmore–Tirunelveli | 20665/20666 | SR | 6 | 8 | Except Tue | 07h 50m | [87] [88] | ||||
29 | Kacheguda–Yesvantpur | 20703/20704 | SCR | 4 | 8 | Except Wed | 08h 15m | [89] | ||||
30 | Patna–Howrah | 22348/22347 | ECR | 7 | 8 | Except Wed | 06h 35m | [90] | ||||
31 | Ranchi–Howrah | 20898/20897 | SER | 6 | 8 | Except Tue | 07h 10m | [91] [92] | ||||
32 | Puri–Rourkela | 20836/20835 | ECoR | 9 | 8 | Except Sat | 07h 45m | [93] | ||||
33 | Mangaluru Central–Thiruvananthapuram | 20631/20632 | SR | 9 | 8 | Daily | 08h 40m | [94] [95] | ||||
34 | Ahmedabad–Okha | 22925/22926 | WR | 8 | 8 | Except Wed (22926)Except Tue (22925) | 06h 30m | [96] | ||||
35 | Varanasi–New Delhi | 22415/22416 | NR | 2 | 16 | Except Tue | 08h 05m | 18 December 2023 | [97] [98] | |||
36 | Anand Vihar Terminal–Ayodhya Cantonment | 22426/22425 | NR | 2 | 8 | Except Wed | 08h 20m | 30 December 2023 | [99] [100] | |||
37 | SMVD Katra–New Delhi | 22478/22477 | NR | 5 | 16 | Except Wed | 08h 10m | [101] | ||||
38 | Amritsar–Delhi Junction | 22488/22487 | NR | 5 | 8 | Except Fri | 05h 30m | [102] | ||||
39 | Coimbatore–Bengaluru Cantonment | 20642/20641 | SR | 5 | 8 | Except Thu | 06h 25m | [103] | ||||
40 | Mangaluru Central–Madgaon | 20646/20645 | SR | 2 | 8 | Except Thu | 04h 45m | [104] | ||||
41 | Jalna–Mumbai CSMT | 20705/20706 | SCR | 6 | 8 | Except Wed | 06h 50m | [105] | ||||
42 | Kalaburagi (Gulbarga)–SMVT Bengaluru | 22231/22232 | CR | 6 | 8 | Except Thu (22232) Except Fri (22231) | 08h 45m | 12 March 2024[106] [107] | ||||
43 | New Jalpaiguri–Patna | 22233/22234 | NFR | 6 | 8 | Except Tue | 06h 55m | [108] | ||||
44 | Lucknow–Dehradun | 22545/22546 | NER | 3 | 8 | Except Mon | 08h 20m | |||||
45 | Ahmedabad–Mumbai Central | 22962/22961 | WR | 4 | 16 | Except Sun | 05h 25m | |||||
46 | Mysuru Junction–MGR Chennai Central | 20663/20664 | SWR | 4 | 8 | Except Thu | 06h 25m | |||||
47 | Hazrat Nizamuddin–Khajuraho | 22470/22469 | NR | 6 | 8 | Except Mon | 08h 20m | [109] | ||||
48 | Secunderabad–Visakhapatnam | 20707/20708 | SCR | 5 | 8 | Except Thu | 08h 45m | |||||
49 | Ranchi–Varanasi | 20887/20888 | SER | 6 | 8 | Except Fri | 07h 50m | [110] | ||||
50 | Bhubaneswar–Visakhapatnam | 20841/20842 | ECoR | 7 | 8 | Except Mon | 05h 45m | [111] | ||||
51 | Patna–Gomti Nagar (Lucknow) | 22345/22346 | ECR | 5 | 8 | Except Fri | 08h 25m | [112] |