Trial runs of high speed trains manufactured by the Spanish firm Talgo may soon take place in the Delhi-Mumbai corridor. The trains will be tested at speeds between 160-200 km/hour. Railways will consider introducing these trains on other routes too, depending on the results of the trials. Talgo has offered free test runs of these lighter and faster trains in India. The rakes will be imported and assembled in India.
If the trains runs on the existing tracks without any upgrades, the travel time between Delhi and Mumbai is expected to be cut down to 12 hours from the current 17 hours.
These trains also consume 30% less energy and will help Indian Railways save electricity.
Picture for representation only. Source: Flickr
According to a senior Railway Ministry official, the tracks will only need minor changes and a revamp will not be needed. These trains are already running in several places in Asia and the US.
“Of the 60,000 km of railway tracks in India, some would be upgraded, but most would remain as is. That’s where we can make a difference, by increasing the speed of the train without changing the track infrastructure,” Talgo Chief executive officer Jose Maria Oriol had said earlier.
According to Talgo, its trains require less maintenance and make less noise. Talgo manufactures intercity, high speed and passenger trains. In July 2015, the Government had given an in-principle nod to the manufacturers to conduct these trials in India.
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