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The Vande Bharat Express, also known as Train 18,[1] is a semi-high-speed, intercity, electric multiple unit train[2] operated by the Indian Railways on 4 routes as of October 2022. Routes include New Delhi to Shri Mata Vaishno Devi Katra, New Delhi to Varanasi,[3] Gandhinagar to Mumbai Central,[4] and Amb Andhaura (Una) to New Delhi [5]. It was designed and manufactured by the Integral Coach Factory (ICF) at Perambur, Chennai under the Make in India initiative. Construction took 18 months. The unit cost of the first rake was estimated at ₹100 crore (US$13 million), although it is expected to go down with subsequent production.[6] At the original price, it is estimated to be 40% cheaper than a similar train imported from Europe.[7] The train was launched on 15 February 2019,[8] by which point a second unit was expected to have been produced and readied for service.[9] The service was named 'Vande Bharat Express' on 27 January 2019.[1]

This article may require copy editing for grammar, style, cohesion, tone, or spelling. (October 2022)

Vande Bharat Express
Vande Bharat Express on its inaugural run
Overview
Service type	Higher-speed rail
Status	Active
Locale	India
Predecessor	Shatabdi Express
First service	15 February 2019; 3 years ago (2019-02-15)
Current operator(s)	Indian Railways
Website	indianrail.gov.in
Route
Line(s) used	4
On-board services
Class(es)	AC Chair (Economy Class) Executive Chair (Premium Class)
Seating arrangements	Airline style Rotatable seats
Catering facilities	On-board catering
Observation facilities	Large windows in all carriages
Entertainment facilities	On-board WiFi Infotainment System Electric outlets Reading light
Baggage facilities	Overhead racks
Other facilities	Automatic doors Smoke alarms CCTV Cameras Odour control system Bio-vacuum toilets Sensor-based water taps Roller blinds Foot rest Seat pocket Bottle holder
Technical
Rolling stock	Vande Bharat Express (Trainset)
Track gauge	Indian gauge 1,676 mm (5 ft 6 in) broad gauge
Electrification	25 kV 50 Hz AC Overhead line
Operating speed	130 km/h (81 mph) (Present service speed) 160 km/h (99 mph) (Certified for commercial run; if track infrastructure permits) 180 km/h (110 mph) (Tested speed)
Average length	384 metres (1,260 ft) (16 coaches)
Track owner(s)	Indian Railways

Vande Bharat Express has a maximum speed of 160 km/h that can be sustained for a maximum of 140 seconds.[10][11] It exceeded 180km/h during testing,[12][13] but its tracks are not capable of supporting such high speeds; the train is operated at a maximum speed of 130 km/h (81 mph).[14]

History

Background

India had long since planned to introduce a high-speed rail network. Safety and cost were the primary concerns for the Indian railways.[15] Indian Railways aimed at increasing its maximum speed of 85 km/h (53 mph) to 150 km/h (93 mph).[15]

Indian Railways went on to achieve speeds of 99mph by the mid-2010s after the introduction of Gatimaan Express in 2016, which is still the fastest operating train to date.[16] The next logical step for Indian Railways was to build a modern higher-speed rail. When the Indian railways had floated a tender in June 2015, they found none of the bids to be viable and hence decided to move ahead to build it completely in India. In early 2017, it was planned that the indigenous engine-less (EMU) semi-high-speed train, with modern facilities onboard would run at a speed of 160 km/h (99 mph). Two new train sets were announced to be manufactured in ICF and were named 'Train-2018' since the manufacturing of these semi-high-speed services were targeted for completion in the year 2018.[17][18]

Manufacturing first set

The manufacturing of 'Train-2018' was completed in October 2018. It was planned to replace the then-existing 30-year-old Shatabdi Express, which takes 15% longer time to complete the same journey. Since it took 18 months to be manufactured, it was renamed to 'Train 18'.[19] During test runs, the train achieved an operational speed of 180 km/h, making it the fastest train to ever run in India.[20]

Inauguration

After four years of planning, manufacturing, and testing, Train 18 was inaugurated on 15 February 2019 and was ready to begin service from New Delhi to Varanasi.[21] It was soon renamed to 'Vande Bharat Express' by Railway minister.[1]

After the success of the New Delhi–Varanasi route and the later New Delhi–Katra route, the Railway Board approved the production of 45 new Vande Bharat train sets by 2022.[22] Production was delayed due to the Covid-19 pandemic (which caused a 12.5% loss in annual production capacity) and other administrative issues.[23] Despite this, the Union minister decided to move ahead with the schedule and asked the officials to build 10 trains by August 2022.[24]

Present day

In January 2021, Indian Railways awarded the contract for supply of propulsion and control equipment of 44 rakes to Medha Servo Drives, based at Hyderabad.[25] As of November 2021, it was reported that shells of at least five new sets are in final stages of completion, with the electronics to be fitted within next couple of months. ICF was hopeful to launch at least one rake by March 2022 keeping the previous deadline in mind.[26] In 2022 Union Budget, the government announced to manufacture 400 more Vande Bharat Express during the next three years.[27]

Design

The Vande Bharat Express's exterior appearance consists of aerodynamic design, narrowing at each end of the train which is designed to combat air resistance.[28] It also has a driver cabin at each end, allowing for faster turnaround at terminating stations.[29] The train has 16 passenger cars, with a seating capacity of 1,128 passengers.[30] Two of the center compartments are first class compartments that seat 52 each, with the rest being coach compartments seating 78 each.[31]

Alternate coaches are motorised to ensure even distribution of power and to help in quicker acceleration and deceleration. The gangways are interconnected and fully sealed to allow better mobility between coaches and to reduce noise respectively. The train also features GPIS-based passenger information system, bio-vacuum toilets, and rotational seats which can be aligned in the direction of travel (only in executive class).[32]

The train's seats, braking system, doors, and transformers are the only elements of the train to be outsourced,[6] with plans to make them domestically on the production of the next unit.[33] Train 18 employs a regenerative braking system.[34]

Indian Railways and ICF were also planning the development of Train 20, another semi-high speed train that was supposed to replace the Rajdhani Express. This new train was planned to have Aluminium body with sleeper coaches.[35] Indian Railways also had planned to order 40 train sets of Train 18 by 2022, which would include modified cabin crash guard made out of aluminium along with a lithium-ion battery set.[36][37]

Second version

After the government had announced 75 new sets of Vande Bharat Express to be ready by August 2023,[38] ICF is set to build an upgraded version of these rakes and has planned to test the two prototypes on trial runs by March 2022.[39][40]

In addition to the previous facilities, the second version of this train will include upgraded amenities, seating, security and surveillance systems and the features designed for emergencies. When it comes to the safety features, the new rakes will be equipped with four emergency windows, disaster lights in all coaches in the event of light system's failure, fire survival cables inside of door circuits, availability of ventilation for three hours in case of Air Conditioner's power failure and emergency push buttons will also be increased to four per coach.[39][40]

The new coaches are also set to be equipped with a centralised Coach Monitoring System for all types of electricity, climate control and other vital systems of the train. To address the seat reclining issues of the previous version, the new rakes will be equipped with a push-back arrangement for smooth reclining. An official added that the new coaches will be provided with a bacteria-free air conditioning system and higher flood protection of underframe equipment to ensure reliability during monsoons.[39][40]

Trial runs

The train's first trial run occurred on 29 October 2018 in Chennai,[29] focusing on crew orientation and testing the train's brakes,[41] with further testing scheduled to be done in Delhi on 7 November and later in Rajasthan.[33] An Indian Railways official reported that "some fuses went off" during the trial in Chennai, but that the issue was minor and quickly fixed.[42] The train ended up leaving for Delhi later than expected, on 11 November, and arrived on 13 November.[42] Testing was set to commence along a section of track between Bareilly and Moradabad in Uttar Pradesh on 17 November,[43] but the location was subsequently changed to the stretch of rail between Moradabad and Rampur due to unspecified issues with the initial section of track.[44] The Moradabad–Rampur testing occurred at low speeds ranging from 30–60 km/h (19–37 mph).[45] After the lower-speed testing, the train was moved to a section of track between Kota and Sawai Madhopur to be tested at operating speed.[43] A team put together by India's Research Design and Standards Organisation will supervise the testing and give the go-ahead for the final speed test.[46]

During its trials, Train 18 reached speeds of 180 km/h (110 mph), the highest speed any train in India has reached in the trials but the due to speed limit of railway track of routes which used by Vande Bharat Express, the actual top operating speed is restricted to 130 km/h (81 mph).[47] The train is capable of peak speed of up to 200 km/h (120 mph).[13]

On 20 December 2018, one of the train's window was smashed by a thrown stone and the glass was shattered during its trial run from Delhi to Agra. The ICF's general manager, Sudhanshu Mani tweeted that a Vandal pelted a stone which broke the glass and hoped to nab him soon.[48][49][50][51]

Inauguration

The train flagged off for an inaugural run by Prime Minister of India Narendra Modi, on 15 February 2019,[8] with its commercial run started from 17 February 2019 onwards. It will be running on the Delhi–Varanasi route,[31] via Kanpur and Prayagraj, connecting the holy city of Varanasi to the Capital city, reducing travel time along the route by 15 percent.[2] The train's regenerative brakes are also expected to allow a 30% savings in electricity costs as compared to its predecessor.[52] At an operating speed of 160 kilometres per hour (99 mph), it will outpace the Shatabdi Express by 30 kilometres per hour (19 mph).[31] Although the trainset has been tested for speeds up to 180 km/h, operational speed has been capped at 130 km/h as an internal report by Indian Railways indicated that just 0.3% of the country's track is capable of supporting speeds of that magnitude.[53] Every other car on the train is motorised.[29] The 8-hour journey from New Delhi to Varanasi station has the Chair Car CC Class fare of ₹1,440.00 and covers the total distance of about 762 kilometers.[54]

Services

In service

No.	Train Name	Version	Train No.	Zone	Frequency	Distance	Speed (km/h)		Inauguration	Operator
							Maximum permissible speed	Average speed
1	New Delhi - Varanasi Vande Bharat Express	1st generation	22435/22436	NR	5 days a week	759 km (472 mi)	130 km/h (81 mph)	95 km/h (59 mph) [55]	3 October 2019	Indian Railways
2	New Delhi - Shri Mata Vaishno Devi Katra Vande Bharat Express	1st generation	22439/22440	NR	6 days a week except Tuesday	655 km (407 mi)	130 km/h (81 mph)	82 km/h (51 mph) [56]	15 February 2019	Indian Railways
3	Mumbai Central - Gandhinagar Capital Vande Bharat Express	2nd generation[57]	20901/20902	WR	6 days a week except Sunday	522 km (324 mi)	130 km/h (81 mph)	96 km/h (60 mph) [58]	30 September 2022	Indian Railways
4	New Delhi - Amb Andaura Vande Bharat Express	2nd generation	22448/22447	NR	6 days a week except Friday	412 km (256 mi)	130 km/h (81 mph)	79 km/h (49 mph) [59]	13 October 2022	Indian Railways

Proposed

1. Vande Bharat Express with seater rake: Mangaluru - Mysuru - Bengaluru - Tirupathi - Chennai, Chennai - Mysuru, New Delhi - Amritsar, Delhi - Lucknow, Howrah - Ranchi, Mumbai CSMT - Pune, Delhi - Bhopal (Rani Kamalapati Railway Station), Bengaluru (Byappanahalli) - Coimbatore - Madurai - Kanyakumari, Howrah - Puri, Ernakulam - Bengaluru, Pune - Bengaluru, Secunderabad - Tirupathi - Bengaluru, Chennai - Kanyakumari, Jaipur - Jodhpur are also mentioned in the list. Some of them will replace some Shatabdi Express trains.
2. Mumbai CSMT - Firozpur Cantonment route with sleeper rake. 1,928 km (1,198 mi)[60]

Export

After the train's inauguration, the Indian Railways has reportedly received queries of interest from some countries in South-East Asia.[61] These countries have shown interest of purchasing the train sets because the average cost of a coach is around ₹ 6 crores which is around four times lower than the world's average cost of ₹24-25 crores per coach. The Indian Railway officials added that the train can be modified according to customer needs.[62][63]

Accidents

A report of the Indian Railways revealed that over 5,500 cattle run over cases were registered in the year 2019. In February 2019, the newly launched Vande Bharat Express hit a stray bull near Etawah in Uttar Pradesh on its second day of service. The aerodynamic nose of the train which was made of steel with a fibre covering was damaged.[64][65] A similar cattle run-over was reported on 17 August 2019.[66]

In another incident, the front portion of a Vande Bharat Superfast Express was damaged after it collided with a herd of buffaloes in Gujarat on 6th October, 2022 days after the semi-high speed train was flagged off by Prime Minister Narendra Modi. [67] The train was on its way from Mumbai to Gandhinagar and the incident occurred around at 11:00 am between Vatva and Maninagar station, ahead of Ahmedabad.

See also

References

External links

Media related to Vande Bharat Express trains at Wikimedia Commons

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