The Coimbatore-Chennai Inter-city Express left Coimbatore for Chennai on Monday morning with the new Linke Hofmann Busch (LHB) coaches.
According to railway officials, this is the sixth LHB rake to be operated in the Salem Division of Southern Railway.
At present, there are four LHB rakes for Coimbatore-Chennai Cheran Express and one for the double-decker Uday Express running between Coimbatore and Bengaluru.
The Intercity Express earlier had 23 ICF coaches, but has been provided with only 22 LHB coaches now, as these can accommodate more passengers compared to the earlier ones, railway officials said.
Manufactured at Rail Coach Factory at Kapurthala in Punjab, the LHB coaches are lighter in weight, better in aesthetics, possess a higher speed potential and increased codal (useful) life in comparison with previous Integral Coach Factory (ICF) coaches.
The LHB coaches are also regarded to be safer with their anti-climbing feature, where the coaches do not climb on top of each other in case of a collision, thereby minimising the chances of injuries to passengers, officials said.
In response to whether more trains running in the division would have LHB coaches, the officials said the Southern Railway would take a decision based on the availability of these coaches.
