New Bengaluru-Mumbai train via Hubballi from May 23, falls short of superfast promise

Bengaluru: The railways on Thursday announced a new dedicated train between Bengaluru and Mumbai via Hubballi but the service will take nearly 24 hours and will not be a superfast, contrary to assurances given by Railway Minister Ashwini Vaishnaw. 

The SMVT Bengaluru-Lokmanya Tilak Terminus-SMVT Bengaluru Bi-Weekly Express will start from SMVT Bengaluru on May 23 from Lokmanya Tilak Terminus on May 24.

Train number 16553 will depart from SMVT Bengaluru at 8.35 pm on Saturdays and Tuesdays and reach LTT at 8.40 pm on Sundays and Wednesdays, respectively.

In the return direction, train number 16554 will depart from LTT at 11.15 pm on Sundays and Wednesdays and arrive at SMVT Bengaluru at 10.30 pm on Mondays and Thursdays, respectively. 

The train, running with 17 LHB coaches, will stop at Davangere, Hubballi, Dharwad, Belagavi, Miraj, Sangli, Karad, Satara, Lonand, Pune, Lonavala, Karjat, Kalyan and Thane.

"The service will cater to the growing travel demand between Karnataka and Maharashtra and provide enhanced connectivity for passengers travelling between Bengaluru, Hubballi-Dharwad, Belagavi, Pune and Mumbai," the South Western Railway (SWR) said.

Before the regular service begins, the railways will run an inaugural one-way special train (06557 SMVT Bengaluru-LTT Inaugural Special) on May 17. It will depart from SMVT Bengaluru at 10 am and reach LTT at 10.30 am the next day.

The train was approved in December 2025 but its long schedule drew widespread criticism. Elected representatives also slammed the timings.

During a visit to Bengaluru on April 25, Railway Minister Ashwini Vaishnaw said the city would get two trains to Mumbai — a Vande Bharat sleeper via Kalaburagi and a superfast train via Hubballi with LHB coaches.

Dharwad MP and union minister Pralhad Joshi also announced that it would be a superfast and later upgraded to a Vande Bharat sleeper. 

But looking at the schedule, train number 16553-16554 is anything but a superfast train.

The train will cover the 1,209-km distance in approximately 24 hours at an average speed of 52 kmph, below the threshold for a superfast train.

Manjunath Kanamadi, Chief Public Relations Officer, SWR, said the Bengaluru-Mumbai route would likely get a Vande Bharat sleeper service via Hubballi and added that details were being worked out. 

TP Lokesh of the Karnataka Railway Vedike criticised the long schedule and lamented that the service connects neither KSR Bengaluru nor CSMT Mumbai — the main train hubs in either city.