The inaugural Chennai Central-Coimbatore Non-stop Duronto Express was flagged off from Chennai Central by Union Minister of Textiles Dayanidhi Maran.
The express train, which is faster than the Kovai Express by an hour, is the third vehicle in the Duronto class of long-haul, point-to-point fast trains in the Southern Railway network, second in Chennai Division and 18{+t}{+h} train in the country.
Addressing the press, Mr. Maran said the government led by Chief Minister M. Karunanidhi would impress upon the Centre to include more trains for the State in the upcoming Railway Budget.
Train No.12243 Chennai Central-Coimbatore (six days a week, except Tuesdays) Duronto Non-stop Express will leave Chennai Central at 6.50 a.m. and reach Coimbatore at 1.30 p.m. the same day.
Train No.12244 Coimbatore-Chennai Central (six days a week, except Tuesdays) Duronto Non-stop Express will leave Coimbatore at 3.05 p.m. and arrive here at 9.50 p.m. the same day. Reservation for the trains will begin on Tuesday. Chennai Mayor M. Subramanian, Southern Railway General Manager Deepak Krishan, S. Anantharaman, Divisional Railway Manager, Chennai and other officials took part.
