Indian Railways: Trials Begin for Vande Bharat Freight EMU; Hits a Speed of 145 kmph
Vande Bharat Trial: Indian Railways has commenced trials for the Vande Bharat Freight EMU. On the very first day of testing, the rake achieved a top speed of 145 kmph.
Vande Bharat Freight EMU Trial: Comprehensive trials for the country's first Vande Bharat platform-based Freight EMU (a superfast parcel rake) began on Wednesday in the Kota Division of West Central Railway. Over the course of the month-long testing period, the state-of-the-art rake will be tested under various speed and operational conditions along the Kota-Nagda-Sawai Madhopur rail section.
On the first day itself, the rake reached a maximum speed of 145 kmph, marking a significant milestone in the trial process. For the Railways, this project represents a major step towards a future high-speed freight network.
Freight EMU Based on Vande Bharat Technology:
Developed by the Integral Coach Factory (ICF), Chennai, this is the country's first 16-coach Freight EMU prototype based on the Vande Bharat platform. The Railways believes that in the future, this train will revolutionize sectors such as e-commerce, express parcel services, cold-chain logistics, and time-sensitive freight transportation.
How the Trial Was Conducted on Day One:
Saurabh Jain, PRO of West Central Railway, stated that the prototype rake was brought to Kota from ICF Chennai for these trials, which are being conducted by the Research Designs and Standards Organisation (RDSO).
He explained that the trial commenced at 6:00 AM on July 29, with the train running from Kota to Mahidpur Road. Testing was conducted at an unrecorded speed of 120 kmph on the Kota-Mahidpur Road section, while successful tests were completed at recorded speeds of 120 kmph and 135 kmph on the Mahidpur Road-Bhawani Mandi section. During the return journey between Mahidpur Road and Kota, the rake achieved a maximum speed of 145 kmph. Green signals were provided at all stations throughout the test, allowing the trial to be completed without any signal-related interruptions.
What did railway officials say?
According to railway officials, this trial run, which began on July 29, will continue for approximately one month. During this period, various technical tests will be conducted, including oscillation trials at speeds of 120, 130, 140, and 145 kmph; Emergency Braking Distance (EBD) tests; coupler force tests; curve performance tests; traction, braking, and jerk tests; regenerative energy and PAPIS tests; signal and telecom interference tests; door operation and other safety tests; as well as static tests related to CCTV, lighting, and other internal systems.
At least two round trips will be operated daily during the trial, and the maximum trial speed has been set at 145 kmph.
According to the Railways, this modern freight EMU consists of a 16-coach rake, comprising 2 DTCs (reefer vans), 2 NDTCs, and 12 parcel coaches. It has a total payload capacity of 397.02 tonnes and an axle load capacity of 20.32 tonnes.
What are the features?
This rake incorporates modern technology similar to that of the Vande Bharat train. It is equipped with refrigerated parcel facilities, forced ventilation, pneumatic retractable roller flooring, four wide automatic sliding doors per coach, CCTV cameras, LED lighting, fire detection systems, container locking mechanisms, and advanced braking and propulsion systems.
From a safety perspective, all train doors lock automatically once the speed exceeds 5 kmph, and the train will not move forward unless the closure of all doors is confirmed. The Railways believes that the successful trial of this freight EMU will give new momentum to high-speed parcel corridors, e-commerce logistics, cold-chain freight, and time-sensitive goods transportation across the country. Once commercial operations begin, this modern rake will prove to be faster and safer than traditional freight transport systems.
