Indian Railways’ latest project – an upgraded train for the common man – will soon be ready for trials. The new train with upgraded second class 3-tier sleeper coaches and second class unreserved coaches, is being manufactured at the Integral Coach Factory (ICF) in Chennai. The new train, the name for which is yet to be decided, will have some Vande Bharat Express-style features.
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The 22 coach train will have 8 General Second Class coaches, 12 non-AC sleeper cars and 2 luggage-cum-guard vans. The new train will have superior interiors for enhanced safety and passenger comforts, gangways, semi-permanent couplers, destination boards among other features.
Importantly, to attain higher speed for more efficient operation, the train will operate on the push-pull method of Indian Railways using two locomotives, one at each end of the train. For the new train two WAP5 locomotives with aerodynamic design are being made by Chittaranjan Locomotive Works (CLW). In contrast, Vande Bharat Express is a self-propelled train set.
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When will the new Indian Railways’ train for the common man be ready?
According to ICF General Manager BG Mallya, the work on the train is progressing well. The push-pull upgraded sleeper train is expected to be ready at the ICF end by middle of October. “Once the WAP5 locomotives are received from CLW, we will be able to test the train. The expectation is that that new train will be ready for trials by October end,” BG Mallya told TOI.
Indian Railways has been projecting Vande Bharat Express trains as the face of new age world-class travel. A new train for the common man with features of Vande Bharat may be a step up from the existing Antyodaya trains as well.
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Meanwhile, the national transporter is also working on making a new Vande Metro train for up to 200 kilometers inter city travel. Additionally, Indian Railways will also roll out a sleeper variant of the Vande Bharat Express train this fiscal – a more premium version of the Rajdhani Express trains.
