- By Deeksha Gour
- Wed, 24 Sep 2025 10:58 PM (IST)
- Source:JND
Tirunelveli–Chennai Egmore Vande Bharat Express: The Tirunelveli–Chennai Egmore Vande Bharat Express has been expanded to 20 coaches from Wednesday, following high demand from passengers. The move comes after repeated requests from commuters and intervention by Tirunelveli MP C. Robert Bruce.
This semi-high-speed service was first launched in September 2023 with eight coaches. It runs daily from Tirunelveli Junction at 6.05 AM and covers a distance of 653 km, reaching Chennai Egmore at 1.55 PM The return journey begins at 2.45 PM from Chennai and concludes at Tirunelveli at 10.30 PM
The train’s travel time of 7 hours 50 minutes is significantly faster compared to other superfast services on the same route, which take over 10 hours. Despite higher ticket fares, passenger response has remained strong.
Owing to this popularity, the service was upgraded to 16 coaches in January 2024, increasing capacity to 1,128 passengers. However, demand continued to exceed availability. To address this, Southern Railway has now introduced 20 brand-new coaches built at the Integral Coach Factory in Perambur, Chennai, enabling the train to carry 1,440 passengers.
Officials said the expansion is expected to ease rush and further boost the popularity of the Vande Bharat on this busy route.
In separate news, Prime Minister Narendra Modi will virtually inaugurate three new train services from Rajasthan on September 25. These include the Jodhpur–Delhi Cantt and Bikaner–Delhi Cantt Vande Bharat Express trains, along with a Udaipur–Chandigarh service. The Jodhpur and Bikaner trains, starting regular runs from September 27 and 28, will cut travel times significantly and feature modern amenities. Operated by North Western Railway, each train has eight coaches. The Udaipur–Chandigarh service will run twice weekly, improving regional connectivity and boosting local trade and tourism.