20-Hour Train Journey In 6 Hours? Railways' Mega High-Speed Rail Plan To Connect Delhi, Mumbai, Chennai And More

Indian Railways is developing a Rs 16 lakh crore network of high-speed rails, which could cut travel time to major cities in India drastically. While no deadline has been declared, the new corridors are expected to change the face of long-distance travel and can be an effective alternative to flying on a number of routes.

Delhi to Siliguri in six hours?

Consider the journey from Delhi to Siliguri, the entry point to North Bengal and the Northeast. For most people, it is an air journey for the approximately 1,500-km travel. Though the flight time is two hours, the journey from home to destination takes over five hours if airport hassle (transport, security check, check-in, baggage collection and transfer to final destination).

For the train, it means far more time at far less cost. The Dibrugarh Rajdhani Express, the quickest, takes a little over 20 hours for the trip. The numbers change drastically for high-speed trains envisioned by the Railways.

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According to Union Railways Minister Ashwini Vaishnaw, the proposed high-speed corridors-Delhi to Varanasi and Varanasi to Siliguri-will cover Delhi to Siliguri in about six hours via Lucknow, Varanasi and Patna.

How Does It Compare Globally?

Several countries have already demonstrated the transformative impact of high-speed rail networks.

Beijing-Shanghai, China

• Length: 1,318 km
• Bullet train travel time: 4.5 hours
• Conventional rail travel time: 12 hours

China's Fuxing trains operate at speeds of up to 350 kmph on one of the world's busiest high-speed rail corridors.

Tokyo-Osaka, Japan

• Length: 515 km
• Bullet train travel time: 2.5 hours
• Conventional rail travel time: 6.5 hours

The Tokaido Shinkansen, launched in 1964, remains one of the most successful high-speed rail systems globally.

Paris-Lyon, France

• Length: 427 km
• Bullet train travel time: 2 hours
• Conventional rail travel time: 3.8 hours

France's LGV Sud-Est line revolutionised domestic travel and became a model for European high-speed rail development.

Work On New Corridors To Begin

Railway officials stated that the Detailed Project Report (DPR) of the Delhi-Varanasi corridor is being examined. In the meantime, the DPR for the Varanasi-Siliguri corridor is anticipated to start in the next few months.

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In conjunction with the Mumbai-Ahmedabad bullet train project, these corridors will provide high-speed connectivity across northern, western, southern and eastern parts of the country.

First indigenous bullet train of India

Concurrently, BEML Limited, a PSU in the railway sector, is also working on the development of India's first indigenous bullet train.

The train is expected to be rolled out in August 2027 on a 100-km stretch between Surat and Bilimora on the Mumbai-Ahmedabad corridor. Although the train is initially planned to run at a speed of 280 kmph, the same trains are expected to run at a speed of up to 350 kmph.

BEML Chairman and MD Shantanu Roy remarked that it will be a "game-changer for India in the area of high-speed rail technology" and a giant stride towards self-reliance in the sphere of high-speed rail technology.

According to Railway Minister Ashwini Vaishnaw, the work on the bullet train corridor between Mumbai and Ahmedabad has started gathering pace, and the progress made on the corridor is about 15 km per month.

To speed up the progress and make the costs cheaper, as well as encourage domestic production, the government is also likely to make use of similar components, such as rolling stock, civil construction, signalling, etc. In all the future bullet train projects in the country.

Such standardisation is expected to provide less dependence on imports and set up a complete high-speed rail ecosystem across the country.