Train 18, India's first engine-less train, trial-run today: Details here
The maiden trial-run of India's first engine-less train, the indigenously-built 'Train 18' is scheduled to take place today, on the Bareilly-Moradabad section on a standard railway track. A Research Designs and Standards Organization (RDSO) team has also reached Moradabad for the trial run. The train, regarded as a successor to the Shatabdi, can travel at a top speed of 160 kmph. Here's more.
Train 18 in, Shatabdi Express out!
The semi-high speed, 16-coach 'Train 18', built at a cost of Rs. 100 crore per rake by the Integral Coach Factory (ICF), Chennai, will eventually replace the Shatabdi-Express for inter-city travel. It is expected to cut journey time of 30-year-old Shatabdi by 15%.
Seating format, total seating capacity, and other features
An all air-conditioned chair-car train, Train 18 comprises 16 coaches including executive as well as non-executive classes. There are two executive compartments in the middle with 52 seats each, while the trailer coaches have a seating-capacity of 78 each. The total seat-count of the train stands at 1,128. The seats can be rotated 360 degrees, and can be aligned in the direction of travel.
On the safety front
A Train Management System in the driver's cabin ensures precise brake-control and automated controlling of the doors. The driver can even monitor the movement of passengers on the platform through CCTVs in his cabin, before closing the doors. Fitted with CCTVs in all coaches, the train also features Emergency Talk-Back units, so that passengers can talk to the crew in case of any emergency.
More salient features
In order to enhance passenger comfort, the train also comes with inter-connected fully sealed gangways, automatic doors with retractable footsteps, on-board Wi-Fi and infotainment facilities, GPS-based Passenger Information System, Modular Toilets with bio-vacuum systems, diffused LED lighting, and differently abled-friendly washrooms.
Indian Railways on a roll: What's next?
With the much-awaited Train 18 all set for its first-trial, the Indian Railways' next big project in focus, would be the next-generation aluminium-bodied Sleeper-class train called 'Train 20', that will replace the Rajdhani Express, and is expected to hit the tracks by 2020.
