Mumbai will have to wait until 2025 to get next AC local

Following troubled trials of the first air-conditioned rake, railway officials want to change the way air-conditioned trains are procured. This means Mumbai may not get its second AC train before 2025

If you’re waiting for the day when you can finally catch an air-conditioned train to work, don’t hold your breath. Turns out, the next AC train won’t be here before 2025, thanks to all the glitches in the first rake, which officials have been struggling to fix ever since it got here in April.

Also read: Mumbai's first AC train too tall for British-era bridges

Cooling its heels: The sole AC train is languishing in the Kurla car shed. The train’s doors, AC and motor are not working simultaneously and authorities are planning to install new inductors to fix this problem. file pic

Multiple hiccups
As per the original plans, nine more AC rakes were to join the first one, depending on its success. But ever since it got here, the AC train has been plagued with problems. That’s because the railways have been penny wise, pound foolish. Originally, the estimated cost of the rake was R110 crore, but the railways managed to bring this down to half by assembling the train with parts from different agencies. “This AC rake was assembled to make it cost effective. But it is giving lot of trouble even before the trial runs have begun,” said a railway official. Even now, the authorities have not managed to ensure that the train’s doors, AC and motor can function simultaneously – they are now waiting to install new inductors to fix this problem. All these repairs are likely to take the final cost of the rake up to Rs 60 crore.These problems have now forced the railways to reconsider its plan. “We have already burnt our hands by getting an assembled AC rake. Ideally, these should be procured through proper tendering process,” said another official. The manufacturers have already been informed about the issues that have cropped up, and only after the problems are rectified will the officials order more trains.

Read Story: Why Western Railway may end up getting Mumbai's first AC local

Not coming soon: Even the existing AC rake won’t start running until two years later. File pic

Long process
Central Railway, which is currently working on the rake at the Kurla car shed, is going to install new inductors in the rake at the end of this month, and will probably only begin the trial runs after a few months. Another reason for the delay is the fact that the taller AC train won’t fit under the old, British-era bridges towards CST. mid-day had reported last week that this might mean the train will be given to Western Railway. Either way, the trial runs and tests are likely to go on for at least two years, during which more issues will probably crop up. Once all the glitches have been fixed, the Commissioner of Railway Safety (CRS) and Railway Board will have to give the final clearance before the train can run — another lengthy process.

Only after the train is cleared to run and is declared successful will the authorities call for new AC rakes. At present, the Mumbai Rail Vikas Corporation (MRVC) is already getting 72 new Bombardier rakes by December under phase two of the Mumbai Urban Transport Project (MUTP-2). It is now too late to merge AC trains in this order, so MRVC is thinking of getting them under the Rs 11,000-crore MUTP-3.

New corridors
It is possible that the nine AC rakes that were supposed to follow the first one, will now be merged with the MUTP-3 rakes. However, the Railway Ministry and Niti Aayog have been fighting over permissions for the project since early this year. “Presently, we have planned 47 non-AC rakes under MUTP-3. This proposal is with the Niti Aayog and hasn’t got the approval yet,” said Prabhat Sahai, chairman and managing director, MRVC.

Also Read: Major glitch in AC train puts Central Railway in the hot seat

The AC trains will probably be introduced on the two new elevated corridors — CST-Panvel Fast corridor on the Harbour line and the Bandra-Virar corridor. Both are set to be completed by 2021-22, but it will probably be another five years before they are ready for public use.

An official from Railway Board said, “These are multi-crore projects and are being looked into thoroughly. Both these elevated rail corridors are likely to have AC trains running on them. But this also depends on the success of the existing AC rake.”

Rs 60
The minimum fare being considered for when the AC train finally starts to run

2018
The year before which even the existing AC rake is unlikely to be pressed into service

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