Mumbai-Goa Vande Bharat Express speed likely to be restricted

A Vande Bharat Express train at CSMT. File Pic/Pradeep Dhivar

The Mumbai-Goa Vande Bharat Express train is set to be flagged off just seven days before Konkan Railway's monsoon timetable sets in and may possibly result in the restriction of its speed. The Konkan region is known to receive heavy rainfall during the monsoon season and running trains there has always been challenging. To ensure passengers are safe, trains are run cautiously at a restricted speed amid monsoon patrolling and monitoring from various control rooms.

The monsoon timetable, which comes into effect by early June every year, will be adhered to from June 10. Special precautions are taken during the monsoon such as round-the-clock patrolling at vulnerable locations and the deployment of stationary watchmen, apart from speed restrictions. Self-recording rain gauges are installed at key stations to record the rainfall in the region and alert officials in case of heavy rains. In addition to this, flood warning systems for bridges alert officials if the water flow exceeds the danger level and anemometers are fixed on bridges to monitor wind velocity.

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As per the planning for the Vande Bharat Express, the Integral Coach Factory in Chennai has already dispatched an eight-car train to Madgaon in Goa. The eight-coach train will be modified later if required. As per the tentative non-monsoon timetable, the train will depart from CSMT at 5.25 am and reach Madgaon at 1.15 pm. The return journey from Madgaon will start at 2.35 pm and reach CSMT by 10.25 pm.

It will have seven halts between CSMT and Madgaon: Dadar, Thane, Panvel, Khed, Ratnagiri, Kankavli and Thivim. While the sectional speed on CSMT-Diva is 105 kmph, between Diva and Roha it is 110 kmph and on the Konkan Railway stretch it is 120 kmph. The train will run at an average speed of 78.84 kmph. The train will run during the non-monsoon period at the aforementioned time until June 10, after which it will slow down.

June 10
Day monsoon timetable kicks in on the Konkan Railway