These rakes will be deployed across the suburban networks on the Western Railway and Central Railway and will replace the non-AC trains currently in use.
The MRVC plans to finalise the tenders by September, with the first rake expected to arrive in 2026.
Vande Metro is being developed building on the success of the Vande Bharat Express.
The Mumbai Railway Vikas Corporation (MRVC) has invited tenders for 238 Vande Metro air-conditioned rakes, to upgrade Mumbai’s suburban rail system.
These rakes will be deployed across the suburban networks on the Western Railway (WR) and Central Railway (CR).
As per reports, a total of 2,856 cars will be procured, which can be configured to run as 12-car and 15-car trains.
The rakes will be purchased through the Mumbai Urban Transport Project (MUTP) and will replace the non-AC trains currently in use.
The decision to procure these was taken on 19 May after approval by Railway Minister Ashwini Vaishnaw.
The MRVC plans to finalise the tenders by September, with the first rake expected to arrive in 2026.
The entire stock is expected to be delivered by 2030. An MRVC official said, “Two years will be taken for testing the prototype rake. Thereafter, 50 rakes will come each year.”
The trains will be manufactured by the technology partner in its own factories, ensuring Make in India guidelines.
Vande Metro is a scaled-down version of Vande Bharat Express, the country’s first indigenous semi-high-speed train.
The train is being designed to provide enhanced travel experiences and will feature advanced passenger amenities. The system overall will provide a faster, more comfortable and convenient travel experience to rail users.
In addition, the process of establishing two new car sheds, in Bhivpuri (Karjat) on Central Railway (CR) and Vangaon (Dahanu) on Western Railway (WR) — for the maintenance of these AC trains would begin simultaneously.
The two new car sheds are being constructed by the MRVC — with a sanctioned cost of Rs 2,352.77 crore.
The MUTP is a project formulated by the Mumbai Metropolitan Region Development Authority to bring about improvement in the traffic and transport situation in the Mumbai metropolitan region.