Namo Bharat becomes India's fastest train at 160 kmph

Namo Bharat, which operates at the highest speed of 160 kilometres per hour (kmph) on the 55-km stretch of Delhi-Meerut Regional Rapid Transport System (RRTS), has emerged as the latest fastest-running train in the country.

Before this, Gatiman Express, launched in 2016, was India’s first semi-high-speed train, capable of running at 160 kmph between Hazrat Nizamuddin in Delhi and Agra on specially laid tracks. Later, when the Vande Bharat semi-high speed train services began, they also ran at the same maximum speed but only on this route.

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The Railway Ministry decided in June last year to bring down the speed of those premium trains from 160 to 130 kmph without citing any reason. Currently, all trains in India operate at the maximum speed limit of 130 kmph.

Namo Bharat trains have 6 coaches

Thirty trainsets of Namo Bharat, each having six coaches — serving between New Ashok Nagar in East Delhi and Meerut South in Uttar Pradesh — run at a 15-minute frequency from each station and reach a maximum 160 kmph for a few seconds between some of the 11 stations on the route.

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“The entire 82.15 km long corridor with 16 stations, starting from Sarai Kale Khan in Delhi to Modipuram in Uttar Pradesh, is likely to be commissioned soon,” sources in the National Capital Region Transport Corporation Limited (NCRTCL), said.

NCRTC, a joint venture of the Government of India (50 per cent) and the state governments of Delhi, Uttar Pradesh, Haryana, and Rajasthan (12.5 per cent each) is implementing the country’s first RRTS.

Officials said designed in Hyderabad and manufactured at an Astom factory in Savli, Gujarat, the aerodynamic rolling stock, with their sleek and modern design, are harmonious with automatic train protection (ATP), automatic train control (ATC), and automatic train operations (ATO).

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“The distance between two stations varies from five to eight km and the train touches its highest speed between stations with longer distances,” they added.

Once the entire corridor is commissioned, an NCRTC press note said, it will connect Delhi to the heart of Meerut with Namo Bharat trains covering the distance in less than one hour, while stopping at all the stations en route.

“Since the beginning of operations on the 17 km long Priority Section on October 21, 2023, services have been commissioned on a 55 km stretch of the corridor in a phased manner,” it said.

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“As the operational section has expanded, it has solidified its position as an essential transportation solution for the region and has successfully served more than 1.5 crore riders to date,” the press note added.

Different from conventional railways

Officials said the system is different from conventional railways as it does not operate on a fixed timetable or require a seat reservation.

“It is also different from the metro transit service as it is catering to passengers looking to travel relatively longer distances with fewer stops and at a higher speed,” officials added.

The NCRTCL is also carrying out a trial to run a local urban transit service (Meerut Metro Services) on the same infrastructure as Delhi-Ghaziabad-Meerut Namo Bharat Trains.

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“It is a unique initiative. Meerut metro will have 13 stations in the span of 23 km and run on the Namo Bharat network in Meerut. This will provide the commuter a swift change from one to the other without causing any discomfort and make the travel experience comfortable,” the NCRTCL press note said.

(With Agency inputs)