Rail-travel in India is all set to get a face-lift with the introduction of the high-speed Talgo made trains.

The trains have reached Mumbai

Nine state-of-the-art train coaches manufactured by Spanish firm Talgo, which are capable of running at a maximum speed of 200 kmph today, reached Mumbai ahead of their crucial test run by the Railways next month. Dispatched in a cargo ship from Barcelona on March 27, they will be put on trial on the existing tracks for validation test. "Talgo coaches have arrived at the Mumbai port. These coaches will be transported to Izzatnagar Depot after getting customs clearances," a senior Railway Ministry official said. "The first Talgo train trial will be conducted between Bareilly and Moradabad rail route at a maximum speed of 115 kmph for oscillation test. This will be followed by another trial between Palwal and Mathura route at a maximum speed of 180 kmph," the official said.

The trial run of the new train, will be conducted at speeds between 160 and 200 kmph on the existing tracks on the Delhi-Mumbai route soon.

Talgo

After analysing the result of the test run, railways will consider introduction of the Spanish made high-speed trains on other routes too.

Talgo will conduct the time validation trial on Delhi-Mumbai corridor soon, the official said.

Talgo

If the Talgo train runs at speeds varying between 160 and 200 kmph on the existing infrastructure without any upgrade, the travel time between the two cities is expected to be cut down to about 12 hours from the current 17 hours.

Talgo

Besides reducing travel time, Talgo’s lighter trains consume 30 per cent less energy which will help railways reduce their power bill.

The Spanish train maker has offered to test run their lighter and faster trains free of cost.

“We will be issuing the permission letter to Talgo after getting the Railway Board’s approval for importing the rake to India. They (Talgo) have offered to do the trial with no cost to railways,” said the official.

These trains are already running in several places in Asia and the US.