The new Chennai–Coimbatore–Chennai Vande Bharat Express service to be inaugurated on Saturday by Prime Minister Narendra Modi will run at 130 kmph in the Chennai–Jolarpettai section. This will benefit passengers as the new service will take 5 hours 50 minutes to reach the destination, saving one hour twenty minutes of their journey time.
Other trains plying in the section, including Chennai–Bengaluru Shatabdi will also witness considerable reduction in journey time from June, says a release from the Southern Railway (SR).
Across the SR, the speeds of 44 train services were increased in 2022-23. This move will improve the overall efficiency of the zone and will give a fillip to freight operations.
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Speed enhancement works have been completed across 2,037 route-kilometres (RKM) during the year. Further, speed has been enhanced in loop lines across 1,445 RKM.
The SR has increased the maximum speed to 130 kmph from 110 kmph in the Chennai-Renigunta, Arakkonam–Jolarpettai and Chennai-Gudur sections, covering over 413 rkm.
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In important sections across the zone covering a network of 1,218 rkm, the maximum permissible speed has been enhanced to 110 kmph and for a network spanning 406 rkm, the maximum permissible speed of various sections has been enhanced upto 100 kmph during FY23.
Speed of loop lines in various stations across SR has been increased from the existing 15 kmph to 30 kmph for an aggregate length of 1,445 rkm, the release said.