Travel from Bangalore to Chennai in 2 hrs

Bangalore, March 14, The privilege of travelling in an high-speed air-conditioned double-decker express to Chennai, covering a distance of about 360 km in a little over two hours.

Of the seven new express/mail trains Railway Minister Dinesh Trivedi announced Wednesday for Karnataka in the 2012-13 rail budget, introduction of a daily non-stop AC double-decker express will be eagerly awaited as it will reduce the travel time between the two cities by three hours from the five hours theShatabdi Express currently takes.

"Reducing travel time from Bangalore to Chennai by nearly three hours will be possible, as the double-decker express coaches are designed and built to run at 150 km per hour on upgraded tracks with no stoppages," a senior South Western Railway (SWR) official told IANS here.

Of the seven direct express/mail trains operated between the two cities, two are Shatabdis on six days a week, which run at 110 kmph, and two are inter-city trains that take over six hours due to their many halts.

"The double-decker express will be launched as soon as we get the new coaches and funds to upgrade the tracks, which currently enable Shatabdis to travel at 110 kmph," the official said on condition of anonymity.

The double-decker rakes, comprising eight stainless steel coaches and two power cars, are manufactured at the Rail Coach Factory at Kapurthala in Punjab.

"A double-decker coach can carry 128 passengers in comparison to 78 in a Shatabdi chair car, increasing the capacity by about 70 percent. With lower weight per commuter, the coaches are more energy efficient," the official pointed out.

96 new trains

Minister Dinesh Trivedi introduced 96 new trains as part of the 12th plan. His list includes introduction of 75 new Express trains and 21 passenger trains, besides 75 new services in Mumbai suburban rail network, 50 new services in Kolkata suburban rail network and 15 in Chennai suburban rail network. However, there is no mention of the magnet-pulled single rail Bullet trains that India has been aspiring to introduce.

Other highlights:

1. Rail fares hiked by 2-30 paise per km.
2. Second class fares up by 2 paise per km.
3. Platform ticket prices increased to Rs 5 from Rs 3
4. To introduce 75 new express train, 21 passenger trains. 132 trains were introduced in last Budget.
5. To introduce 45 new routes.
6. Emphasis on the Budget will be on strengthening railway safety.
7. Indian Railway safety fund pegged at Rs 16,482 crore.
8. Railways will require Rs 14 lakh crore over next 10 years.
9. Investment on Railways pegged at Rs 7.35 lakh crore in the 12th five-year plan.
10. Internal Resources of Railways pegged at Rs 1.99 lakh crore.
11. Aim to cut operating ratio (OR) to 74% by 2016-17 from 95% now.
12.  Aim for OR at 84.9% in fiscal 2013.
13.  Annual plan outlay for fiscal 2013 seen at Rs 60,100 crore, versus Rs 57,630 crore year-on-year.
14.  Railway's FY13 market borrowing seen at Rs 15,000 crore.
15.  Aim to spend Rs 6,647 crore on track modernization next fiscal year.
16.  Signalling system to be modernized.
17.  To spend Rs 39,110 crore in 5 years to modernize railway signalling and telecom.
18.  To electrify 6500 km of rail line in the 12th plan.
19.  Target 700 km of track doubling and 800 km of gauge conversion next fiscal year.
20. 114 new line surveys will be carried out.
21.  To allocate Rs 4,410 crore in fiscal 2013 for capacity augmentation work.
22.  To invest Rs 18,193 crore in rolling stock in FY13.
23.  To start coaching complex and terminal in Navi Mumbai.
24.  Rail coach factories proposed at Vidisha in Madhya Pradesh and Palakkad in Kerala.
25.  Aim to cut travel time between metros via faster trains.
26.  To set up Indian Railway Station Development Corp.
27.  To develop 100 stations via PPP (public private partnership) route in next five years. Stations to be developed like airports.
28.  To hire over 1 lakh employees in FY13.
29.  MOU signed for Rail freight corridor in Chattisgarh.
30.  PPP model to be firmed up for elevated rail line in Mumbai. 
31.  Satellite based real-time information trains in 18 months.
32.  Reputed global agencies to be hired for catering
33.  Eco-friendly toilets to be introduced in 2,500 coaches.
34. Will set up independent Railway Safety Authority.
35. To set up special purpose vehicle (SPV) to eliminate railway crossings.
36. Aim to eliminate all railway crossings in next five years.
37.  Railway Research Development Council to be set up

Rail Budget: 2nd class fare up by 2 paise/km

Train travel just got costlier! Minister Dinesh Trivedi has announced a hike in passenger fares for the first time in 10 years. Second class passenger fares have been upped by 2 paise per kilometre while sleeper class fares are up 5 paise per kilometer.

AC fares too see a hike by 10 paise per kilometer. First AC ticket is now expensive by 10 paise while second AC is costlier by 30 paise.

He also introduced 96 new trains as part of the 12th plan. His list includes introduction of 75 new Express trains and 21 passenger trains, besides 75 new services in Mumbai suburban rail network, 50 new services in Kolkata suburban rail network and 15 in Chennai suburban rail network. However, there is no mention of the magnet-pulled single rail Bullet trains that India has been aspiring to introduce.

Rail Budget 2012 - travel may get costly

It's the D-day and all eyes will be on Union Minister Dinesh Trivedi who will present the Railway Budget 2012 in Parliament. Sources say that the government is likely to impose a safety cess, although it will not be labelled a fare hike. Sources add that there is a possibility of an additional surcharge, called the Union government development surcharge.

However, the ministry is not likely to announce many new trains this year. A new premium scheme on reservation for a confirmed berth is also likely.

The emphasis, reportedly, will be on modernisation, infrastructural overhaul and on a dedicated freight corridor. Sam Pitroda's recommendations and the Kakodkar report are likely to be a part of the budget document.

Railway Board Chairman Vinay Mittal has said that a fare hike will bolster the railway finances only up to a limited extent. "The urgent need is to consolidate rather than expand," he says.

When asked if the current model of railways is a financially viable model, he said, "Trains run but we don't earn revenue because they are necessary."

"We fulfill a huge social responsibility. There are still areas in the country where people have not seen train in their entire life. There is a huge social cost," he added.

He further said, "There are four to five sources. One is a gross budgetary support. The government gives money. We have to generate our own resources as well. How do we generate through freight and fare and PPP? You have to increase the capacity."

"Even if you have a fare hike, the question is, how much can you do? The poorest of the poor have a certain affordability... and the government has a duty towards them."

But the Railways continues to announce new trains and projects are being distributed. When asked where will the money for those projects come from, the Railway Board chairman said the ministry has been very "circumspect this time" as far as the projects are concerned. "We need to consolidate rather than expand," he said.

Mumbai to Ahmedabad in four hours? Bullet train likely

Mumbai: While high-speed trains have been zipping passengers across cities and continents in Western and Asian countries for years, the idea of introducing the bullet train is finally going to be a reality in India.

Three days before the Rail Budget, there is good news for the city's Gujarati businessmen and workers alike.

In what could be a first for the Indian Railways, a high-speed corridor for long distance passenger trains has been proposed between Mumbai and Ahmedabad. An announcement to this effect is likely to be made on March 14 by Railway Minister Dinesh Trivedi.

The 500-kilometer-long Mumbai-Ahmedabad route, which currently takes seven hours on the fastest train the Mumbai-Ahmedabad Duronto Express, is lined up for the introduction of bullet trains.

"Initially trains will run at 200 km/h, but gradually, after significant improvements and upgradation of crucial signalling and telecommunication systems, the trains will run at speeds in excess of 350 km/h," said a senior railway official, on condition of anonymity.

This would drastically bring down the travel time of passengers frequenting these two vital and financially strong cities, bringing the travel time down to a mere 4 hours. Railway authorities claim that this corridor would be the much-needed fillip for Indian Railways, and have estimated the high-speed line to cost Rs. 60,000 crore.

The decision to accelerate the bullet train project comes against the backdrop of the report submitted by the Expert Group for Modernisation of Indian Railways, headed by technocrat Sam Pitroda, recently.

As per the report, the project would take at least ten years to complete and private investment would be pivotal to finance the project.

"We will look to explore the public-private partnership wherein we hope to expect an investment in the range of Rs. 20,000 crore from them in the next five years," said another railway official.

The report also states that the government will have to share 20 per cent cost of the project, in case private investors face financial problems.

Meanwhile, railway officials also state safety measures will be taken into consideration before implementing the high-speed corridor because if trains exceed speeds even in the range of 10 km/h, the scope of accidents will grow multi-fold.
Railway officials believe that simply fencing tracks with concrete walls will not ensure complete safety, as often cattle cross the tracks, that at times leads to accidents and derailments.

In mid-2011, a delegation of experts from Japan visited Delhi and Mumbai for discussing high-speed corridors. They inspected the route on the Mumbai-Delhi stretch as part of high-speed corridor that will ply between Surat, Vadodara, Ratlam, Kota and Mathura.