Vande Bharat sleeper trains update: The first prototype of the Vande Bharat Sleeper trainset has been manufactured and will undergo field trials, informed Union Minister Ashwini Vaishnaw to Parliament in a written reply to the Rajya Sabha. He further said that the timeline of the rollout of the train is subject to the successful completion of the trials.
Vaishnaw said that as of December 2, as many as 136 medium-distance Vande Bharat trains, with Chair Car Coaches, are running across the Indian Railways network. Of these, 16 Vande Bharat Express services are catering to the needs of stations located in the states of Tamil Nadu.
The longest distance Vande Bharat train services are running between Delhi and Banaras, covering a distance of 771 km. He further added that the introduction of new train services, including Vande Bharat services and its variants, is an ongoing process on Indian Railways subject to traffic justification, operational feasibility, resource availability, etc.
Vande Bharat sleeper trains: Features
Some of the distinguished features and amenities of these trains are as under:
- Fitted with KAVACH.
- EN-45545 HL3 fire safety standards compliant train.
- Crashworthy and Jerk-Free semi-permanent couplers and anti-climbers.
- Crashworthy Design of Carbody complying with EN standards.
- Regenerative braking system for energy efficiency.
- Higher Average speed with quick deceleration and acceleration.
- Emergency talk-back unit for communication between Passenger and Train
- Manager/Loco Pilot in case of emergency.
- Accommodation and accessible toilets for Passengers with Restricted Mobility (PRM) in the driving coaches on each end.
- Centrally controlled Automatic Plug Doors and Fully Sealed wider gangways.
- Ergonomically designed ladder for ease of climbing on to upper berths.
- Centralized Coach Monitoring System for better condition monitoring of passenger amenities such as Air conditioning, Saloon Lighting etc.
- CCTV surveillance cameras in all coaches.
