PM Modi flags off 2nd intrastate Vande Bharat Express in Tamil Nadu: It connects Chennai to south of state

One among the nine Vande Bharat services that were flagged off by Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Sunday,  the Tirunelveli-Madurai-Chennai service is the first such train to connect the southern parts with the state capital.

The train will run six days a week — except Tuesday — and will cover the 653 km distance in 7.50 hours, according to Southern Railway.

From Tirunelveli, it will leave daily at 6 am, while the train will depart from here at 2.50 pm towards the southern city.

Also read: PM Modi to virtually flag off Kacheguda-Bengaluru Vande Bharat Express

Expected to boost tourism, business

The service is expected to give a boost to tourism in the Tirunelveli-Madurai sector and help professionals, including businessmen.

The less travel time of the train compared to other trains in the route which usually take 10 hours and upwards is expected to have a large impact on the people who have been operating their professions from Madurai, Tirunelveli and other southern towns in Tamil Nadu.

The stoppages are Virudhunagar, Madurai, Dindigul, Tiruchirappalli and Villupuram junctions, besides Tambaram, before arriving at Chennai Egmore.

The first intra-state Vande Bharat service was flagged off by the Prime Minister in April this year, and it runs between the western industrial city of Coimbatore and Chennai, covering about 500 km in 5.50 hours.

Features of Vande Bharat Express

The Vande Bharat trains are lighter and have a faster top speed. These trains take about 52 seconds to accelerate to 100 kmph and can reach a maximum speed of 160 kmph.

The semi-high-speed trains are equipped with advanced state-of-the-art safety features, including an anti-collision system and an indigenously developed Train Collision Avoidance System, called KAVACH.

It also has four emergency windows for each coach, four platform side cameras instead of just two, and rearward cameras outside the coach. The disaster lights in the coaches come with a battery backup of three hours.

The train also offers an on-demand Wi-Fi connectivity-enabled infotainment system, and a 32-inch LCD screen in every coach.

As per the Ministry of Railways, the air inside the train gets filtered through a photo-catalytic ultraviolet purification system. It filters and cleans the air of germs, bacteria, viruses, etc., to the extent of 99 percent.

It also provides Heating, Ventilation & Air Conditioning (HVAC), and sliding footsteps in coaches, for a better passenger experience and saves about 30 percent on electricity with its advanced regenerative braking system.

The Vande Bharat train has 16 coaches, with a total seating capacity of 1,128 passengers. It offers two spacious options — AC Chair Car (CC) and Executive Chair Car (EC). While all seats are recliners, the executive coaches will experience the added feature of 360-degree rotating seats.

(With PTI inputs)