The train, which has been allotted for Southern Railway, will run at a maximum speed of 110 km per hour.
Credit: X/@NammaChennai_
Chennai: The Integral Coach Factory (ICF) here on Wednesday unveiled the first air-conditioned Electric Multiple Unit (EMU) train for the Southern Railway which is likely to run on the busy Chennai Beach-Chengalpattu route. This will be the first AC EMU train in South India as such trains are currently in service only in Mumbai on the Western Railway.
The new train with 12 coaches has been built on par with Metro coaches with a higher capacity of 1,116 seats and space for 3,798 standees. AC coaches in EMU trains were introduced in Mumbai in 2017 and since then there has been demands from Chennai, which has a robust EMU network, for an air-conditioned coach.
The train, which has been allotted for Southern Railway, will run at a maximum speed of 110 km per hour and has been designed under slung electric propulsion system. The AC EMU is also equipped with a new generation bogie with fully suspended traction motors, wheel mounted disc brakes and air spring suspension at secondary stage, similar to Vande Bharat, the country’s premier train.
Stainless steel body coach with straight side walls, electrically operated double leaf automatic sliding doors, wide and large double sealed glass windows for panoramic view, sealed wider vestibule gangways, aluminium extruded modular luggage rack, and three-seater stainless steel seats in all coaches are some of the key features of the new train.
Like in Metro trains, the AC EMU will have GPS-based LED displays for passenger information and announcement system and passenger talk-back facility at each doorway for emergencies. The train will have CCTV cameras in all compartments and the regenerative EP (Electro-Pneumatic) brake will save up to 35 per cent electrical energy due to regeneration.
Sources in the Southern Railway said the trial runs of the new train will begin in the next couple of weeks, following which it will be pressed into service. “Chennai Beach-Chengalpattu which connects the city with many of its suburbs is the most busiest EMU route in and around Chennai. We believe this route will be ideal for the AC EMU to make its debut,” a SR official said, adding that no decision has been taken on fare structure.