The proposed Bengaluru-Mangalore Vande Bharat Express has moved a step closer, with South Western Railway beginning field trials of an automatic emergency brake-equipped rake on challenging Sakleshpur-Subrahmanya Road Ghat section in the Western Ghats.
The Mysuru Division of South Western Railway started the trials on Wednesday to evaluate the feasibility of operating semi-high speed train on the Bengaluru-Mangalore route, officials told PTI.
According to a PTI report, the 20-car Vande Bharat rake, specially built by the Integral Coach Factory (ICF), arrived in Mysuru last week. After static trials in Mysuru on Tuesday, it was moved to Sakleshpur for field testing.
What is being tested?
Personnel from the Research Designs and Standards Organisation (RDSO) are on board to assess technical and operational parameters.
Mysuru Divisional Railway Manager Mudit Mittal stated to PTI that trials on the critical section would continue for a few more days. The exercise will assess acceleration, stability, braking and other operational parameters along with the automatic emergency braking system.
The tests are essential because the Sakleshpur-Subrahmanya Road section comprises of steep gradients, sharp curves, tunnels, and bridges, posing operational challenges for trains.
Railway Minister had said service would commence soon
The trials come months after Railway Minister Ashwini Vaishnaw indicated that the Mangaluru-Bengaluru Vande Bharat was in the pipeline.
During a visit to Bengaluru in April 2026, Vaishnaw mentioned that the service would be launched soon, as per a report by The Indian Express. The report stated that the proposed train was likely to be operated by South Western Railway. It also cited Vaishnaw as referring to technical requirements, including electrification and an Automated Emergency Braking system for the steep gradients.
The current testing of an emergency brake-equipped rake is therefore an crucial technical step before regular operation can be considered.
Why is this 55-km Ghat section challenging?
The difficulty of the route was detailed by the Ministry of Railways in a PIB release last year in December, when it announced completion of electrification of the Sakleshpur-Subramanya Road Ghat section.
The 5-km stretch has a 1-in-50 ruling gradient, 57 tunnels, 107 sharp curves and 226 bridges. The ministry mentioned there is no approach road to the railway track in the difficult terrain, whereas the area is also highly prone to landslides during the monsoon.
Electrification work started in December 2023, followed by a successful electric locomotive trial conducted on December 28, 2025. Completion of the project made the entire Bengaluru-Mangaluru route fully electrified, with the Ministry stating it would enable Vande Bharat and other fast electric trains to operate towards the coastal regions.
The engineering work included installing 427 main and 427 spare brackets across the 57 tunnels. The geological studies were done with support from the National Institute of Rock Mechanics and Bangalore University.
At that time, Vaishnaw had mentioned, “Now we will be able to operate Vande Bharat train through this route to Mangaluru.”
The current field trials take that plan forward. However, the regular Bengaluru-Mangalore Vande-Bharat train has yet to start. The successful trials and safety clearances would pave the way for the possible introduction of the service.