The Hindu : Tamil Nadu / Chennai News : Southern Railway augments speed limit of 52 trains

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Tuesday, Jul 22, 2008
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Tamil Nadu

Tamil Nadu - Chennai

Southern Railway augments speed limit of 52 trains

S. Vydhianathan

CHENNAI: Southern Railway has increased the maximum permissible speed of 52 trains in the zone to 110 kmph. Though the increase in the speed may not reduce the overall running time of these trains, it will definitely improve their punctuality. The increase will provide buffer time for trains to make up any delay during the course of journey.

The speed increase has been made possible by strengthening the track and by obtaining safety clearance for operating certain types of locomotives to the maximum permissible speed.

The routes on which 52 trains running are the Chennai Central-Gudur, Chennai Egmore-Chengalpet-Dindigul, and Chennai Central-Shoranur sections. Before the end of the current financial year, the permissible speed of trains on the Chennai Central-Arakkonam section will also be increased to 110 kmph from the current 105 kmph.

Southern Railway has also upgraded the speed over the loop lines from 15 kmph to 30 kmph on the entire Villupuram-Tiruchirapalli section. The section is the most critical one as it records more than 70 crossings daily from 6 pm to 6 am for mail/express trains. By increasing the speed over the loop lines, the loss of time for a train for negotiating the loop line will be considerably reduced. (Trains are expected to move at 15 kmph on loop lines.) This will also have positive impact on the punctuality on the section, according to Chief Public Relations Officer Neenu Ittyerah.

Southern Railway has planned to take up the upgradation of the Shoranur-Mangalore/ Trivandrum and Dindigul-Madurai routes to operate trains at 110 kmph also during the current financial year. After completing the above routes, Southern Railway has plans to bring all other routes up to 100 kmph in the zone within the next 12 to 18 months, the CPRO added.

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