Run your office on Shatabdi's fully-loaded corporate coach

Boardroom on wheels!

The Railway Board recently accorded approval for this project, which will be the first in the country to have a special coach for executive corporate travellers on Shatabdi.
The coach will be equipped with GPRS connectivity phones, Wi-Fi for internet, LCD monitors, projectors, microphones, on-board operation and control facility to run an office and satellite radio, in addition to the services of a pantry and other facilities.

Tenders will be invited shortly from Travel Management Corporations to maintain the executive coach for a period of one year. The company which gets the contract will be responsible for booking clients for use of the coach. Individuals travelling on the train cannot, however, use the coach unless it is booked through the Travel Management Corporations.

According to Senior Divisional Commercial Manager of Bangalore Division, Anwar Hussain, corporate companies who want to book the coach for can do so through the selected
Travel Management Corporations.

“We hope to start the services from November. We have seen a shift from air travel to train by many passengers, due to the distance to the airport for such short-haul travel. We expect more travellers to consider travelling by Shatabdi, in view of the added services we are going to offer,” he said.

The idea, an initiative of the Bangalore Division of the South Western Railways, was proposed more than a year ago. In the time that the Railway Board took to approve the proposal, economic recession had set in.  Ajay Anand, Business Manager at IFB Travel Systems, feels that the timing for starting the services might be somewhat tricky.

Ajay, who was involved in the project when it was originally formulated, said that in view of the recession, a lot depends on how well it is marketed. “The contract should be given to one of the bigger players as it has to be marketed really well. But the idea has great potential and we are constantly watching people move from airports to train stations for travel, as it has become less of a hassle and definitely less expensive,” he said.

The AC chair car coach that will be added for this purpose will be regular coach that will undergo minor alterations of the interior. If the plan sees success in the one year that it runs, the Railway Board is likely to consider adding a new coach constructed with major modifications.

Stay wired

* GPRS connectivity phones.
* Wi-Fi for internet.
* LCD monitors.
* Projectors.
* Microphones.
* Satellite radio.
* On-board operation and control facility to run an office.