High speed Vande Bharat Express to soon run from Visakhapatnam

On Friday, 23 September 2022, the Waltair Divisional Regional Manager (DRM) Anup Sathpathy announced that the Vande Bharat Express, launched in February 2019, will soon travel via Visakhapatnam. Currently, the semi-high-speed rail travels between only two routes- New Delhi to Shri Mata Vaishno Devi and New Delhi to Varanasi. According to the DRM, a crew to work on the Vande Bharat Express is currently undergoing training in Chennai and Delhi. He added that special training would be required for loco pilots and other staff.

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The Vande Bharat Express, which travels at 130 kmph, spans over 16 coaches with advanced features. All the coaches are loaded with facilities such as onboard WiFi, reading lights, overhead luggage racks, bio-vacuum toilets, sensor-based water taps, and many more. Security systems such as smoke alarms, CCTV cameras, and automatic doors have also been employed on the train. With only two classes- AC Chair (Economy Class) and Executive Chair (Premium Class)- the seats are built in airline style.

Further, DRM Satpathy stated that the new route of the Vande Bharat Express via Visakhapatnam is yet to be ascertained. Whether the train will flag off from Visakhapatnam Railway Station or will have the station as one of its stops has not been confirmed. Also, he confirmed that a few batches have completed training at the Integral Coach Factory in Chennai.

Speaking about the redevelopment works of the Visakhapatnam Railway Station, Anup Sathpathy mentioned that two new platforms were proposed to the higher authorities. Also, he said that trains from Visakhapatnam would soon have more AC coaches considering the high demand. He also spoke about the blankets provided in AC coaches and said that new blankets would be procured for the Visakha Express.

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