China starts its 2252-Km long Shanghai-Kunming bullet train line

China has started a line that links the country’s prosperous eastern coast to the less-developed southwestern part of the country. It is the Shanghai-Kunming line which is 2,252-Km in length and will cut down travel time from Shanghai to Kunming from 34 to 11 hours. The line goes through the five provinces of Zhejiang, Jiangxi, Hunan, Guizhou and Yunnan.
This has been reported in indianexpress.com dated 28 December 2016.

The maximum speed of the train is 330 km per hour and, the line is also the longest east-west high-speed railway in China. A longer rail line that stretches north to south is the 2,298-Km Beijing-Guangzhou line - that was put into operation in 2012.
China has built more than 20,000-Km of high-speed rail lines and, as per plans of the the government. it will increase to 45,000-Km by 2030.
With the launch of the Shanghai-Kunming line, the country’s high-speed rail grid has taken shape, connecting almost all provinces on the Chinese mainland. China is aggressively marketing its bullet train technology in different countries, including India.


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Japanese maglev is the fastest train in the world traveling at 603 Km per hour

Japan has to its credit of creating the Shinkansen high-speed rail line which opened in 1964. It was a perfect timing because it was in that year that Tokyo hosted the Summer Olympics, and Japan took the opportunity to come to the limelight and debut the world's first commercial bullet train.
History would be repeated because in 2020, the Japanese capital will host the Summer Olympics, and the country will once again shatter rail records by launching the new Japanese maglev. It will be the fastest train in the world after traveling at 603 kilometers per hour on a test run near Mount Fuji last year. It has broken its own world record of 590 km per hour that had been set the previous week.
This has been reported in edition.cnn.com dated 4 November 2016.

Maglev trains are already operating at slower speeds in Shanghai and Changsha, in China, and Incheon, in South Korea. They make use of magnetic repulsion both to lift the train up from the ground (this reduces friction), and to propel it forward. Maglev is Japan's boldest rail innovation yet. As per plans, the Chuo Shinkansen maglev line will link Tokyo to the southern city of Nagoya in 40 minutes. This will be faster than flying, given the time it takes to get through an airport. The line would, later, be extended to Osaka. Incidentally, the 16-carriage train can shuttle 1,000 passengers along the 177 mile (286 km) track. Japanese prime minister Shinzo Abe is a big fan of this project and he is proposing a route from Washington to New York - it will be at a speed that would be equivalent to that between Tokyo and Nagoya.


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Bullet can wait, Talgo is here - travel Mumbai to Delhi in 13-hours, much faster than Rajdhani Express

Yes, the Bullet Train can wait. In order to run Bullet trains, it would be necessary to redesign the route and tracks to accept high speeds. But, Spain's Talgo will make use of existing facilities. It is here and can cover Mumbai to Delhi in just 13 hours - much faster than the Rajdhani Express that takes nearly 16 hours to cover the distance of 1384-Km. Rajdhani travels at 130kmph while Talgo travels at 180kmph.
This has been reported in timesofindia.indiatimes.com dated 27 July 2016.

As things stand, a Mumbai to Delhi train journey within 13 hours could become a reality in the first week of August. The final phase of trials of the nine-coach Talgo Spanish-manufactured high speed train will make three trips between Mumbai and Delhi between August 1 and 5.
The schedule as given by Western Railway (WR) is - it will depart from New Delhi at 7.55 pm on August 1, and will maintain a speed of 130 kmph during the entire journey. At this speed, the distance of 1,384 kms will be covered in 14 hours and 5 minutes. The Rajdhani Express touches 130 kmph and takes nearly 16 hours to cover the same distance.
The composition of the nine-coach Talgo train would be two executive class compartments, four chair cars, a cafeteria, a power car, and a tail-end coach for equipment. Incidentally, the train has already completed the Mathura-Palwal test run at 180 kmph.


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Talgo is a company of Spain and it is right now in India with its high-speed train and running it on existing railway tracks at different locations - it is clocking up maximum speeds of 180kmph. The Indian Railways has conducted the second trial run for high-speed Talgo trains on the existing Palwal-Mathura section of the North-Central Railway.
This has been reported in zeenews.india.com dated 14 July 2016.

In the course of its trial run, it broke the record of the country's first semi-high speed train Gatimaan Express between Delhi and Agra which can run at a maximum speed of 160 kmph. However, the Talgo train clocked a maximum speed of 180 km per hour during the trial run. It covered the distance of 84-Km in only 38 minutes. At present, it takes more than 90 minutes to cover the distance.
Incidentally, the speed of 180 kmph attained by Talgo is the maximum reached by any train on Indian tracks. The trials were done with empty coaches and in the next phase trials will be conducted with sand bags filling the passenger sitting spaces.
Talgo is based in Madrid and is a leading manufacturer of semi-high speed (160-250 kmph) and high-speed (350 kmph) passenger trains, which are energy-efficient.


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High speed Spanish trains - trials of Talgo to commence on May 28

India wants bullet trains and, while Japan is already into this and while China waits in the sidelines, Spain is trying to make an entry. Talgo, a leading Spanish firm that is into manufacturing high speed trains is right here in India. It plans to conduct trials between Bareilly and Moradabad at speeds of 115 kmph on May 28. The trials will be held over a number of days before the second phase is conducted on the Mathura-Palwal line.
This has been reported in timesofindia.indiatimes.com dated 25 May 2016.

The schedule drawn up for the first phase of the speed trials envisages at least four trips in total each day, depending on availability of space between the two stations. A team of 11 Spanish engineers are working in the workshop of Indian Railways - there are modifying the Talgo coaches to make them suitable for Indian tracks in time for the trials.
The testing of the coaches will be in three phases. It will begin with the Bareilly-Moradabad section at speeds of 115kmph. The track length between the two stations is approximately 90_km. In the second phase, speeds will be of about 180 kmph and it will be held between Mathura and Palwal. The final phase will be at full speed of up to 220 kmph between New Delhi and Mumbai.
The coaches are nearly 30 years old and have been brought on rent from Renfe for speed trails in India. and speed trails of these coaches had been successful in a number of countries including Kazakhstan. The final decision on whether Tslgo wins the race will depend on the results of the trials.


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Bullet train for the rich and famous - fare will be 1.5-times that of AC 1st class

The bullet train in India would, as it stands,cater to the rich and famous. This is because the tariff proposed by the Ministry of Railways for the upcoming bullet train service between Mumbai and Ahmedabad will be 1.5 times more than the first class AC fare prevailing now.
The present AC 1st class fare by Duronto Express between Mumbai and Ahmedabad is Rs.2,200. Therefore, for the 508-Km run between the two cities via the dedicated, high-speed corridor, the fare will be around Rs.3,300. The fare in Japan for a similar distance is around Rs 8,500. That is the fare in Japan for the 550-Km run between Tokyo and Osaka on the Shinkansen, as the bullet train network there is called.
This has been reported in timesofindia.indiatimes.com dated 5 May 2016.

Moreover, the first phase of the Indian network will have a maximum design speed of 350 km per hour and an operating speed of 320 km per hour and, the ministry expects around 36,000 daily users per day both ways by 2023, going up to 186,000 by 2053.
There would be a total of 12 stations namely, Mumbai, Thane, Virar, Boisar, Vapi, Bilimora, Surat, Bharuch, Vadodara, Anand, Ahmedabad and Sabarmati. The total journey time of the fast train will be 2.07 hours and of trains that will stop at each station will be 2.58 hrs.


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Spanish Talgo - another high-speed train on the horizon from Delhi to Mumbai

India badly wants high-speed trains and, while Japan has bagged a contract for the Mumbai-Ahmedabad bullet train and China appears to have lost out, a new entrant has descended in the field. It is the Spanish train maker Talgo which is well-known for its high speed and light trains. It promises to cover the 1200-kilometers Delhi-Mumbai journey in just 12 hours as compared to over 17 hours at present.
It has already despatched nine state-of-the-art train coaches and these have arrived in Mumbai and will undergo crucial test run by the Railways next month. They had been sent in a cargo ship from Barcelona on March 27 and will now be put on trial on the existing tracks for validation test.
This has been reported in zeenews.india.com dated 23 April 2016.

Talgo has offered to test run its lighter and faster trains free of cost on the existing Indian Railways network. The plans drawn up is in 3 stages - the first Talgo train trial will be conducted between Bareilly and Moradabad rail route at a maximum speed of 115 kmph for oscillation test. Then will come a second trial between Palwal and Mathura route at a maximum speed of 180 kmph. Finally, the 3rd trial - it will be carried out between Delhi and Mumbai at a maximum speed of 200 kmph.
It seems Talgo trains can run at speeds varying between 160-200 kmph on the existing infrastructure without any upgrade. And, in addition, its lighter trains consume 30 per cent less energy which will help railways reduce the power bill as well.


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Bullet train must ferry 88,000 to 118,000 passengers daily to make it financially viable

A report by the Indian Institute of Management Ahmedabad (IIM-A) has indicated that the proposed bullet train between Mumbai and Ahmedabad will have to ferry 88,000-118,000 passengers daily or undertake 100 trips daily so that it can become financially viable. One train usually carries 800 passengers, therefore, to carry 88,000 passengers daily, it would be necessary to make a total 100 trips, or 50 trips each way. Or - three trains should run every hour in each direction.
This is certainly a tall order and, considering the fact that the bullet train would not carry any and every Tom Dick and Harry, it would be a tough proposition for the railways.
This has been reported in ibnlive.com dated 18 April 2016.

It has been stated in the report, titled, "Dedicated High Speed Railway (HSR) Networks in India: Issues in Development" that - if the Railways set the ticket price at Rs 1500for 300-km drive per person fifteen years after the operation, it will have to ferry between 88,000 and 110,000 passengers every day to ensure that it repays the loans with interest on time.
The bullet train is being undertaken with loan from Japan who have offered a concessional loan of Rs 97,636 crore to fund about 80 per cent of the project cost with a repayment period of 50 years beginning from the 16th year of operation at an interest rate of 0.1 per cent.
To repay the remaining 20 per cent loan, the report makes an assumption of 8 per cent average rate of interest (on Rs 20,000 crore to be funded by Centre). Since Japan has offered a 15-year moratorium on loan, the revenue concerns for the Indian Railways will begin from the 16th year.
The total distance covered by the train will be 534-Km.


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India cozies up to Japan and ignores China - realignment of world forces

#NarendraModi #ShinzoAbe #bullettrain #ModiAbeInKashi By agreeing to Japan's participation in the bullet train project, India has sent a clear signal to China that it does not feature in India's scheme of things. In fact, India has indicated that it would partner Japan, America and Australia in their efforts to achieve a "balanced" regional architecture in the Asia Pacific.
This is seen as a clear message to its neighbor China and is the first time that Delhi has so clearly defined its role in partnering Beijing's rivals in its neighborhood.
This has been reported in telegraphindia.com dated 12 December 2015.

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As prime minister Modi has said - the two countries will work together in (the) East Asia Summit to promote an inclusive, balanced and open regional architecture and maritime security in the region. Japanese prime minister Shinzo Abe has reciprocated by saying that 'a strong India is good for Japan, and a strong Japan is good for India.

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