Railway Budget 2018 new trains: Finance Minister Arun jaitley in his Union Budget 2018 speech announced that modern world-class  train sets will be rolled out by Indian Railways in the coming years. The first such train set – Train 18 – is being manufactured at the Integral Coach Factory in Chennai and will be rolled out some time in 2018-19. ICF on its part has alrteady committed to a roll-out timeline for Train 18 which is a self-propelled semi-high speed train capable of attaining speeds of up to 160 kmph. Train 18 will be an AC-chair car and will be made under the ‘Make in India’ initiative at half the cost of import!

Adding to the good news for passengers is the fact that in 2020, Indian railways will roll out Train 20, which will also be an EMU with a maximum speed of less than 180 kmph. This will have sleeper-class coaches as well and will be manufactured in India in collaboration with a foriegn player. The popular belief is that new trains are announced to please masses and also score political brownie points. However, the only new train announced in this Budget was the Train 18, whose route has yet not been decided.

Interestingly, in Union Budget 2017, which was the first time that no separate Railway Budget was presented, no new trains were announced by Finance Minister Arun Jaitley. New trains are a big highlight, especially for the common man. But railway and infrastructure experts are of the view that announcement of new trains is a trend that emerges from an aim to please vote banks. Infrastructure experts also believe that Indian Railways and its lines do not have capacity to run any new trains. The Narendra Modi government has been credited with realising this and not announcing new trains in the last few Railway Budgets. In Railway Budget 2016, the then Railway Minister Suresh Prabhu had announced new categories of trains and coaches. These were; Humsafar Express, Tejas Express, Antyodaya Express, UDAY Double-decker train and Deen Dayalu unreserved coaches.

Railway Budget 2018: Upcoming trains and new trains introduced in recent years

Train 18: Train-18 will boast of multiple features such as; GPS-based passenger information system, plush luxurious interiors with diffused lighting, on-board infotainment, automatic plug doors, WiFi onboard, stainless steel body, sleek modular toilets, zero discharge vaccum-bio toilets, latest generation bogies for better riding comfort, underslung 3-phase propulsion system and underslung 3-phase propulsion system.

UDAY Express: Utkrisht Double-Decker Air-conditioned Yatri or the UDAY Express is double-decker train that is expected to roll out in the coming months. The train has been envisaged as a means to attract overnight business travellers. The luxury train will host Indian Railways’ first food vending machine. The routes that have been decided so far are between Bengaluru and Coimbatore, between Bandra and Jamnagar and between Vijayawada and Visakhapatnam.

Humsafar Express: Humsafar Express is an all-AC 3-tier train that has been very successful according to Indian railways. The luxury Ac-3-tier train has multiple safety features, male urinals and baby diaper changing seats as well. With comfortable seats and better passenger amenities, Humsafar Express has been one of the most successful branded trains of Indian Railways. Mohd. Jamshed, Member Traffic recently told FE Online that Indian Railways more Humsafar Express trains will be launched as the demand is very high.

Tejas Express: Launched on the Mumbai-Goa tourist route, Tejas Express is a premium AC-chair car that is several notches above the experience that Shatabdi Express trains are able to offer. Said to be Indian Railways’ train with aircraft-like features, Tejas Express has reclining seats, onboard WiFi, attendant calling buttons, reading lights and personalised LCD infotainment screens! Soon the Delhi-Lucknow and Delhi-Chandigarh Tejas Express trains will be launched as well.

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Antyodaya Express: As the name suggests the Antyodaya Express is an all unreserved general class train that is meant to cater to the common man. Several new features such as better seats, coat hooks and better lighting, Aquaguard water have been provided for unreserved passengers at no additional cost.

Deen Dayalu coaches: Similar to Antyodaya Express, the Deen Dayalu coaches are also for unreserved passengers and are attached to various trains based on the requirements. These coaches also boast of all the new features that are part of the Antyodaya trains.