Talgo Semi-high-speed train is expected to complete the journey of 1,384 km in 12 hours and 35 minutes -

Talgo Semi-high-speed train is expected to complete the journey of 1,384 km in 12 hours and 35 minutes -

Talgo train from New Delhi expected to arrive at Mumbai Central by 8.30am

The Spanish semi-high-speed train Talgo, which left New Delhi railway station at 7.55 pm on Monday, will cover the journey in 12 hours and 35 minutes

New Delhi: Spanish train Talgo left the New Delhi railway station for Mumbai at 7.55pm on Monday evening, its first long-distance journey in the country, aiming to reach its destination by 8.30 am.

The semi-high-speed train is expected to complete the journey of 1,384 km in 12 hours and 35 minutes, while present super-fast trains such as the Rajdhani Express takes around 16 hours. The New Delhi-Mumbai Central Rajdhani Express has an average speed of around 90-100 km/hr and can attain a maximum speed of 130 km/hr.

The semi-high-speed train will undertake four journeys between New Delhi and Mumbai on 1, 5, 9 and 14 August on different speeds ranging between 130 kmph to 200 kmph. “This is the timing trial and railway will find out how much time it is likely to save if we allow such type of coaches to run on our tracks,” a railway board member said. The train consists of nine coaches, two executive class, four chair car, a cafeteria, a power car and a tail-end coach for staff and equipment.

Indian Railways has already held trials for shorter distance in May and July.

Vijay Kumar, executive director infra (mechanical) at Railways who was responsible for the first semi-high-speed train Gatimaan and is overseeing the trials of Talgo, said the initiative reflects the transformation at Indian Railways. He spoke of the light-weight composition of Talgo trains, their energy efficiency, and the smooth ride, courtesy fewer wheels, and no axles.

“The train is being experimented on four parameters–its track worthiness, time saving, energy efficiency and savings. We would be able to give final decision only once these trials are over,” said Kumar, adding that it was in July 2015 when the Spanish company had approached the Indian Railways to try its coaches and it’s a first for the Indian Railways too.

An executive coach of Talgo has 20 seats while in a Shatabdi, the seating capacity is 50. Similarly, in a Shatabdi, a chair car has 72 seats and in Talgo, the number is 36. So, if the seating arrangement is compared, a Rajdhani train runs with 22 coaches but for a Talgo train, 37 coaches would be required to match the Rajdhani capacity. Despite that, gross load of a Talgo train would be less than a 22 coach Rajdhani.

Since Talgo is made of aluminium, its coaches weigh around 12.3 tonnes, while for a Rajdhani the coach weighs around 41.3 tonnes which makes Talgo to gain speed easily. Due to these features a Talgo coach costs around Rs.5 crore in Europe while a Shatabdi coach costs around Rs.2.5 crore.

One of the nine member Spanish Talgo crew which is part of the trials requesting anonymity said the ride in Talgo is more stable. Moreover, there are a lot of passenger friendly features like LCD screens with special head phone panels on seats, revolving chairs which could move 360 degrees, a specialized cafeteria and more leg space.

Source:LiveMint