Indian Railways is set to launch the country's second Vande Bharat sleeper train on the Bengaluru-Mumbai route early next month, following the success of the Howrah-Kamakhya route.
This highly anticipated train route was approved by Union Railway Minister Ashwini Vaishnaw a little over six months ago.
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The new route promises a massive upgrade, especially for people who prefer the overnight commute, as the the railways has slashed the travel time down to around 16 hours whilst providing state-of-the-art amenities and superior comfort.
For now, the services has been proposed to run six days a week, though Indian Railways has not yet issued any official notification on the matter.
The train, numbered 27651/27652, will have 16 coaches: 11 AC three-tier, four AC two-tier and one AC first-class.
Total capacity is expected to be around 823 berths. The Bengaluru-Mumbai train will leave Sir M Visvesvaraya Terminal in Bengaluru at 10 pm and reach Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj Terminus (CSMT) at 1:50 pm the following day.
The train will then depart the CSMT station at 10:30 pm and reach its destination at 2:50 pm the next day.
The alleged fare for the 1,118-km journey could range from Rs 2,600 to Rs 4,250, according to multiple reports.
Although all the things will depend on the class of travel. The final fare structure has not been announced.
The main attraction for the commuters is time, as The Udyan Express, the principal daily direct train between the two cities, takes around 24 hours to reach its destination.
Meanwhile, the Vande Bharat Sleeper is expected to cover the distance in about 16 hours, that saves around 8 hours of passengers's time, and that is centre of attraction for the train.
Vande Bharat Trains
Launched on the New Delhi-Varanasi route in February 2019, the Vande Bharat trains have served over 9.1 crore passengers through one lakh trips. In FY25-25 alone, approximately 3.98 crore passengers availed the service, reflecting a robust year-on-year growth of nearly 34 per cent from 2.97 crore passengers in FY 2024-25.
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In its first 119 trips over three months, the Kamakhya-Howrah Vande Bharat sleeper service achieved over 100 per cent occupancy, carrying 1.21 lakh passengers.
The above mentioned performance highlighted high demand and strong passenger trust in premium overnight rail services.
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