Karnataka's exclusive Vande Bharat Express will likely cover 489 km between Bengaluru and Dharwad in six and a half hours, about 30 minutes sooner than previously thought.
During the trial run on Monday, the train took just six hours and 14 minutes to reach Dharwad from KSR Bengaluru, running at a speed of 110 kmph for more than 350 km. Even more promisingly, it covered 469 km from KSR Bengaluru to Hubballi in just 5 hours and 33 minutes.
This, even after stopping at Davangere for 15 minutes and at Hubballi for 19 minutes.
The return leg wasn't as fast, though. The train covered the Dharwad-KSR Bengaluru section in almost seven hours. Hubballi-KSR Bengaluru took 6 hours and 19 minutes. The train also stopped at Yeshwantpur and Davangere stations.
These timings will likely reflect once the train starts commercial operations in the coming days, a senior official in the Bengaluru railway division said. Travel time will reduce further once the entire route length (489 km) becomes fit for trains to run at a speed of 110 kmph, the South Western Railway (SWR) said in a statement.
Speaking to reporters at Hubballi, SWR General Manager Sanjeev Kishore said the Vande Bharat Express had the potential to reduce the travel time between Dharwad and Bengaluru by 30-45 minutes compared to other trains.
The railway board is yet to approve the timetable and fares for the regular service.
K N Krishna Prasad of the Karnataka Railway Vedike was one of those who boarded the train during the trial run, travelling from KSR Bengaluru to Yeshwantpur. "It's a welcome development," he said. "Since the train reached Hubballi half an hour early, we hope this reflects in the regular service run."
He also hoped that the railways would increase the number of coaches in the future.
During the day, the railways also ran goods trains with electric traction on the Bengaluru-Hubballi line. The Chikkabanavar-Hubballi line (456 km) was electrified in March by the Central Organisation for Railway Electrification (CORE), Bengaluru.
Trial run timings
KSR Bengaluru-Dharwad: 6 hours, 14 mins.
KSR Bengaluru: 5.45 am; Yeshwanthpur: 5.55 am/5.57 am; Sampige Road: 7.02 am; Davangere: 9.14 am/9.29 am; Hubballi: 11.18 am/11.35 am, Dharwad: 11.59 am.
Dharwad-KSR Bengaluru: 6 hours, 58 minutes.
Dharwad: 12.22 pm; Hubballi: 12.45 pm/1.01 pm; Davangere: 1.45 pm/1.47 pm; KSR Bengaluru: 7.20 pm.
Seats, coach composition
The train will have 542 seats: 80 seats in each of the five chair cars; 45 seats in each of the two chair cars and 52 seats in one executive car.