Now Reading: Vande Bharat trial runs begin on Western Ghat section
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Vande Bharat trial runs begin on Western Ghat section
South Western Railway has started trial runs of the Vande Bharat Express on the tough Sakleshpur, Subrahmanya Road ghat section, officials said. The 55-km stretch through the Western Ghats has 57 tunnels,…
The Story in Brief
South Western Railway has started trial runs of the Vande Bharat Express on the tough Sakleshpur, Subrahmanya Road ghat section, officials said. The 55-km stretch through the Western Ghats has 57 tunnels, 226 bridges and 108 sharp curves. A 20-coach rake equipped with an automatic emergency braking system is being tested.
The Research Designs and Standards Organisation is leading the assessment. One outlet reports the trials are scheduled from August 11 to 20, while another says they began on a Wednesday and will continue for a few more days. Success depends on safety clearance from the Railway Board and the Commissioner of Railway Safety.
The Indian Opinion
The hype around Vande Bharat often ignores the real engineering challenge of ghat sections. Each tunnel and curve here was built decades ago for slower trains. The automatic braking system is not a luxury but a necessity. Watch if the 30 kmph speed limit during trials holds, that number will tell us whether this route can truly handle semi-high speed service.
Sources (2): businesstoday.in, hindustantimes.com
This story was synthesised by AI from the 2 sources linked above.
Updated: this story now draws on 2 sources.
