Kerala’s first Vande Bharat train that began its second trial run, this time all the way up to Kasaragod, covered the 223-km Thiruvananthapuram-Kottayam-Ernakulam stretch in three hours and 12 minutes on Wednesday, clocking an average speed of 70 kmph.
The train that began its trip from Thiruvananthapuram at 5.20 am, arrived at Ernakulam Junction railway station at 8.22 am, six minutes faster than on Monday. It had in its first trial run on Monday covered the 500-km Thiruvananthapuram-Kannur stretch in seven hours and 10 minutes, cruising at an average speed of over 70 kmph. It is expected to cover the saturated Ernakulam-Shornur stretch at a relatively lower speed, while attaining an average of over 70 kmph speed in the Shornur-Kasaragod stretch where the number of trains is relatively less.
Aiming for 80 kmph
Reiterating that the train will be able to attain average speed of 80 kmph in the route if the number of stops was limited, Railway sources said that every effort will be made in the coming days to prevent detention of other trains to make way for Vande Bharat Express. Half a dozen trains had suffered delay of up to 20 minutes during its trial run on Monday. Their timings might be rescheduled in the coming days, they added.
The average speed of trains in Kerala is way below 50 kmph, due to what Railway officials said was due to its topography having far too many curves and gradients, and also stops at frequent intervals. Each train suffers a delay of up to 10 minutes at a stop, slowing it down, and also trains that come behind it.
Efforts to increase speed
The impending flag off of the Vande Bharat train on April 25 at Thiruvananthapuram by Prime Minister Narendra Modi is expected to catalyse efforts underway to increase the speed of trains in Kerala. The proposed laying of second track through Alappuzha in the 69-km Ambalapuzha-Ernakulam stretch (the sole rail corridor in Kerala where there is only single track), and straightening of curves in order to augment speed limit to 110 kmph in another 18 months, is expected to drastically improve the speed of trains, Railway sources said.
Speaking to media persons about plans to improve the speed to 110 kmph and later to 130 kmph, Union Railway Minister Ashwini Vaishnaw had on Tuesday said that automatic signalling too will be introduced, which in turn will enable operation of more trains in the State.
