Mumbai, March 26: India’s first bullet train between Ahmedabad and Mumbai- which is believed to run at a maximum speed of 350 km per hour will come with automatic rotation seats along with a host of other new facilities. The rotating seats will help passengers enjoy the view outside while the train chugs through terrains and mountains. The bullet train will also have coffee makers, towel warmers and fast food vendors on-board over other facilities.
The ambitious train that will cover the 508-km stretch in under three hours will have one business class coach, separate toilets, and washrooms for the specially-abled. According to a report by Hindustan Times, the bullet train will have 70 services between Mumbai and Ahmedabad and will ferry 40,000 passengers by 2023.
The report further informs that the business class coach will have leg rests, luggage space and staff rooms. It will also include refrigerators, boiling water, tea and coffee maker and hand towel warmers. A multi-purpose coach will also be available for feeding mothers or sick persons, which will have a folding bed, baggage rack, and mirrors.
The National High-Speed Rail Corporation Ltd (NHSRCL), the nodal agency implementing the project is believed to study the passenger demand to decide introduction of monthly passes and changing station halts. As per reports by PTI, the railways would run about around 35 bullet trains when it starts operation with about 70 trips per day. The number of trains would be increased to 105 in 2050.
The ambitious project was launched on September 14, 2016 by Prime Minister Narendra Modi and his Japanese counterpart Shinzo Abe. The project is believed to cost around Rs 1.10 lakh crore in which Japan is giving a loan of Rs 88,000 crore for the project at a minimal interest of 0.1 per cent. As per reports, the most important feature to be introduced is the separate toilets and washrooms for women, men and specially-abled passengers.
The government wants to start the services of the proposed Ahmedabad-Mumbai High Speed Rail Network, commonly known as the bullet train on August 15, 2022 to mark India's 75th year of Independence. The bullet train will stop at 12 railway stations on the route but only for 165 seconds each. A 21-km-long tunnel will be dug between Boisar and BKC in Mumbai, of which seven km will be under water.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi described the ambitious project, which is expected to be completed by 2022 and will cut travel time between the two cities from seven hours to less than three, as a "big gift from Japan to India". In the initial days, around 1.6 crore people are expected to travel by train annually, adding that by 2050, around 1.6 lakh commuters would be traveling by the high-speed train on a daily basis.
(The above story first appeared on LatestLY on Mar 26, 2018 10:34 PM IST. For more news and updates on politics, world, sports, entertainment and lifestyle, log on to our website latestly.com).