Travel Delhi to Agra in 99 minutes

India’s fastest train, Gatimaan Express, on Tuesday made its debut run from Delhi to Agra in 99 minutes. 

Railway Minister Suresh Prabhu flagged off the train, which covered the 188-km distance between Hazarat Nizamuddin and Agra Cantt stations, attaining a maximum speed of 160 km per hour. The semi-high speed train was greeted by curious onlookers all along its Delhi-Agra track. The return journey took 100 minutes. 

Other trains cover the same distance in 2-3 hours. Most of the high-speed trains, including Rajdhani Express, run at a speed of 100-110 km per hour. 

Gatimaan Express mainly targets international and domestic tourists headed to Agra to visit the Taj Mahal. The train boasts food and entertainment of international standards. 

Also, in a first, the Railways has introduced train hostesses along the lines of aviation industry. The hostesses greet passengers on their entry and departure, and serve them food. The menu includes Indian and continental food. The fare for chair car in the fully air-conditioned train is Rs 750, while it is Rs 1,500 for executive class.

Painted in royal blue and grey, with a yellow strip in between, the train has a high-power emergency braking system, automatic fire alarm, GPS-based passenger information system and sliding doors in the coaches. 
It has two executive AC chair cars and eight AC chair car coaches and is powered by 5500 HP locomotive.

The passenger amenities have been enhanced by improved coach interiors with wide windows and bio-toilets, besides free multimedia services enabling passengers to view movies, news and cartoons. Photographs of tourist spots in around Agra adorn the coaches.

Hotspot devices in coaches enable passengers to access multimedia services free of cost directly on their smart-phones, tablets or laptops.

“The train which falls in the semi-high speed category of fast trains runs at lower speed in areas with dense population. Loco-pilots have been advised to maintain the speed schedule. The train runs at 160 km per hour in at least 120 km stretch of the route,” said Railways spokesperson Anil Saxena.