Tejas Express, one of the most awaited promises of Railway Budget 2016, is all set to start plying on the Surat to Mumbai route in the next financial year. Railway Minister Suresh Prabhu, on a recent visit to Surat, announced that Tejas Express will start running between the two cities soon. Tejas Express, which is currently being manufactured, has been envisioned as a luxury train service. The train will run at a maximum speed of 130kmph, and will boast of multiple features aimed at enhancing passenger comfort during short journeys.
The Railway timetable that was released late in 2016 included 3 Tejas Express; New Delhi-Chandigarh Tejas Express, Mumbai-Karmali Tejas Express and Anand Vihar–Lucknow Tejas Express. Now, with the new Surat-Mumbai Tejas Express, a fourth route has been added.
But, how much will Tejas Express reduce travel time between Surat and Mumbai? According to Ravinder Bhakar, the CPRO of Western Railways, the travel time would approximately be the same as Rajdhani Express. “Currently Rajdhani Express takes around 2 hours and 55 minutes between the two cities at around 130 kmph. We are trying to reduce that. Tejas Express should take around 2 hours and 45 minutes, so that would come to around the same as Rajdhani,” he told FE Online.
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Suresh Prabhu has described Tejas Express as the “future of train travel in India”. The new luxury, semi-high speed train, will offer onboard services such as entertainment, local cuisine, WiFi, etc. Equipped with 22 new features, the chair cars will also come with LCD entertainment screens with headphone sockets. According to a PTI report, Indian Railways is working on an agreement with renowned chef Sanjeev Kapoor to decide on the food menu that Tejas Express will offer. Luxurious chairs with recliners and leg rest, reading lights, more mobile and laptop charging points, attendant call button, toilet occupancy indicators, smoke detectors, modular bio-toilets, and automatic door closing metro-like mechanism are some of the features that will make Tejas Express stand out.
Indian Railways has already indicated that the fares of Tejas Express will be higher than that of Shatadbi, keeping in mind the additional features that are being offered for passenger comfort. Tejas Express is being manufactured at the Integral Coach Factory in Chennai and is expected to be ready by the end of this financial year.
Last year’s Railway Budget announced 5 new types of train services and coaches; Deen Dayalu coaches, Antyodaya Express, Humsafar Express, Tejas Express and UDAY Express, and overnight double-decker train. While Deen Dayalu coaches for unreserved passengers and Humsafar ‘luxury’ sleeper train have already started plying, Antyodaya will be launched shortly. UDAY is still on the drawing board and Indian Railways hopes to complete the project in the next financial year.