Fastest local train in India speeds into Mumbai

And expect a smoother ride too, thanks to the new technology that will drive your WR suburban trains in just a few weeks' time.

By Binoo Nair & Virat A Singh, Mumbai Mirror | Updated: May 27, 2011, 10.37 AM IST

Time-starved Mumbaikars with their insatiable need for speed will celebrate this one for sure. The country's fastest local train, which can attain an impressive top speed of 130 kilometres per hour, reached the city a couple of days ago and is currently parked at the Mumbai Central car shed waiting for the customary test rides on WR's suburban lines over the next few days.

The train, built by the Integral Coach Factory (ICF) at Chennai, is named the 105th rake, and was prepared under the supervision of the Mumbai Rail Vikas Corporation (MRVC).

Thanks to state-of-the-art technology, commuters can look forward to a faster and smoother ride on these new trains.
A senior official involved with the project explained that while trains currently on the suburban system can clock a maximum speed of 80 kmph to 100 kmph, the new ones will be faster thanks to special bolsterless bogies.

A bogie, unlike popular belief, is not the coach, but a frame on which the coach and the wheels are mounted. A train's speed depends both on the strength of the bogie and the electrical and mechanical components inside.

In a bolster-less bogie there are no plates in between the bogie and the wheels, making for a faster and smoother ride. “These bogies will also have a riding index of three against an index of four,” said the official.

A riding index is basically a measure of the various movements, or jerks, the train makes when in motion. The lower the riding index figure, the smoother the ride. Those familiar with the relatively smoother rides on the Rajdhani will vouch for it, as these long-distance trains use similar technology .

According to WR sources, the super fast trains are waiting for the safety certificate from the Commissioner of Railway Safety, which will ensure that trains are allowed to reach optimal speed in the longer stretches such as Borivali-Virar , Kalyan-Kasara-Karjat and Virar-Dahanu once completed.

Another official admitted that the experiment with 15-coach locals had not worked out the way it was meant to be. “Faster trains are the future of suburban commuting,” he says, adding, “If we can have faster trains say between Borivali and Virar, we can also run more trains on that stretch. While the first of these trains will not make a noticeable difference to the timetable, the arrival of more such 130kmph trains will give enough reason to tweak it.”

The last time a faster train shaved off time- almost six minutes- on the suburban network was when in 2005 CR managed to run trains between Kalyan and Kasara at 100 kmph.

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