South Central Railway is launching premium super-fast special trains for the first time in the zone in April to meet the increased demand during the summer holidays.
The fully reserved service is primarily targeted at passengers who are willing to pay a premium fare for confirmed berths at the time of booking itself and enhanced standards of service.
Keeping in view the likelihood of heavy rush of passengers as three continuous holidays fall on April 18, 19 and 20, the first premium super-fast special is planned to be rolled out at 23:00 hours on April 17 from Secunderabad to reach Visakhapatnam at 08:50 hours on April 18.
On return trip, the special will depart from Visakhapatnam at 21:10 hours on April 20 and will arrive at Secunderabad at 07:00 hours on April 21, an official release said.
These trains will have only two stoppages - at Rajahmundry and Samalkot stations- in both directions. The train consists of 14 coaches – eight sleeper class, three AC-3 tier, one AC-2 tier and two SLRs.
The features of this train include no waitlisted tickets and no refund except when the train is fully cancelled on railway account due to unforeseen reasons. Also, the booking of tickets can be done only through IRCTC’s portal on internet.
The fare structure for these trains is variable and follows a dynamic model. The basic fare of this train is fixed at the corresponding Tatkal fare of the regular superfast trains. It is Rs 450 for sleeper class, Rs 1180 for 3 AC and Rs 1670 for 2AC for travel between Secunderabad and Visakhapatnam.
The fares will vary as per the intensity of demand/availability of vacant berths. The rate will rise to an upper limit fare as the bookings increase. The fares applicable for each day / transaction shall be indicated at the time of booking on the IRCTC’s e-ticketing website, the release added.
SCR plans to extend the premium special services from Secunderabad to other long distance destinations also in the coming weeks based on passenger response/demand.