As part of the continuous effort for transforming the experience of Indian Railways with the expansion of Vande Bharat Express — the network now has 25 operational routes running across several important cities and towns in the country.
Vande Bharat train now runs across 24 states/union territories (UTs), covering more than 12,000 km and connecting an extensive network of close to 150 stations.
Barring a few states where rail track electrification is going on and the UTs Diu, Puducherry, Lakshadweep, Andaman and Nicobar, all states and UTs are being catered to by Vande Bharat services.
The map depicts the comprehensive network of these trains, showcasing the remarkable growth of Vande Bharat.
7 July, 2023: Prime Minister Narendra Modi flags off two Vande Bharat Express trains today from Gorakhpur, Uttar Pradesh.
This includes Gorakhpur-Lucknow Vande Bharat Express and Jodhpur-Sabarmati Vande Bharat Express. This will be the 24th and 25th routes on the Vande Bharat Express network in the country.
The Gorakhpur-Lucknow Vande Bharat will establish a vital connection between the two cities in Uttar Pradesh, covering a distance of 302 km, including a stop at Ayodhya junction.
It will complete the journey in under four hours. The train is set to commence its regular service starting from 9 July.
The inaugural mini version of the semi-high-speed train in the state will consist of eight coaches, with seven air-conditioned chair cars and one executive chair car coach.
The second train launched today will travel between Jodhpur in Rajasthan and Sabarmati (Ahmedabad) in Gujarat.
During its journey, the train will make stops at Mahesana, Palanpur, Abu Road, Falna, and Pali Marwar stations in both directions. The train will take six hours ten minutes to cover a distance of over 400 km.
Vande Bharat Express train is India’s first semi high-speed train set with quick acceleration and contemporary passenger amenities.
According to the Railways, these trains are leading examples of Make-in-India initiative, and mark a significant progress for the country’s railway network and the enhancement of passenger experiences.
The Vande Bharat Express was inaugurated on its very first route connecting the capital city of Delhi to the holy city of Varanasi in Uttar Pradesh on 18 February 2019.
List of All Operational Vande Bharat Routes
Upcoming lines
25 June, 2023: The Railways will soon launch a new Vande Bharat train from Saharanpur to Prayagraj to cater to the growing demand of the pilgrims for the holy city, in Uttar Pradesh.
Occupancy levels
6 July, 2023: Reeling under the impact of low occupancy rate in some Vande Bharat trains, the Indian Railways is planning to revise the fare structure of the semi-high speed service to attract more passengers.
The fare of Vande Bharat Express is on the higher side in comparison to other mail/express trains.
An exercise has begun to lower the fare of Executive Class, as well as Chair Car, in some sectors where the occupancy is much below than the expectation, according to sources.
Vande Bharat Sleeper Trains
The Indian Railways is also gearing up to introduce Vande Bharat sleeper trains on long-distance routes. At present, these trains have only seating arrangement with Executive Class and Chair Car.
2 July, 2023: As per a recent report, first Vande Bharat prototype with sleeper coaches is to be supplied within 24 months, states Russian company TMH’s executive.
14 June, 2023: A consortium led by Titagarh Rail Systems Limited (TRSL) and Bharat Heavy Electricals Limited signed a contract with Indian Railways for manufacturing and maintenance of 80 fully assembled Vande Bharat sleeper train sets.
This is the first time a contract of this value has been awarded to a private sector player for design and manufacturing of complete train sets and maintenance for 35 years.
The estimated value of the contract is Rs 23,000 crore.
Vande Metro
Following the successful model of the Vande Bharat Express, the Railways plans to introduce Vande Metro trains by 2024 — for local and suburban services across the country.
The train is intended to travel fewer than 100 km. The Vande Metro will serve large cities in a 50-60 km radius, where there are densely populated areas.
22 June, 2023: As part of the plan, the Mumbai Railway Vikas Corporation (MRVC) has also invited tenders for 238 Vande Metro air-conditioned rakes, to upgrade Mumbai’s suburban rail system.
As per reports, a total of 2,856 cars will be procured, through the Mumbai Urban Transport Project (MUTP) and will replace the non-AC trains currently in use on the Mumbai local rail network.
16 June, 2023: Kerala is getting ready to launch the Vande Metro service in an effort to improve the transportation infrastructure and give commuters a top-notch travel experience.
Kerala has been allotted the Vande Metro as part of the railway budget for 2023-24. The project is being explored for both the Thiruvananthapuram and Palakkad divisions, with each division evaluating five routes.
Ten potential routes are currently being considered.