Mangalore-Bengaluru train sees light of day

Mangalore-Bengaluru train sees light of day
AKANKSHA MEHROTRA
DC | BENGALURU


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Hurdles have been cleared at last for introducing the day train from Mangalore to Bengaluru, which was held up due to concerns by the South Western Railway (SWR) over the safety of goods trains operating on the same route
The new train is now expected to be announced in a week’s time by minister of state for railways, K.H
Muniyappa. “South Western Railway was concerned about the simultaneous
movement of goods and passenger trains in the Western Ghats section. All such concerns have been put at rest now as the CRS has approved the MangaloreBengaluru day Express on a traffic- free line,” P.V
Mohan, head of the action committee for development of railway projects in Mangalore, said. In his view, the issue of safety was dragged out of proportion under pressure from the mining lobby
“The committee will be discussing these issues with Mr Muniyappa on Sunday,” Mr Mohan added. With the
introduction of the new train, travel time between the two cities will be reduced considerably
While the night train, which runs via Mysore, covers a distance of 450 km in 12 hours, the day train via Arsikere and Tumkur will cover 400 km in 10 hours and 35 minutes. The action committee is trying to persuade Mr Muniyappa to extend the day train to Karwar and Vasco via Mangalore to satisfy the demand of the people in coastal Karnataka for a train. The day train had been announced in the 2006
2007 railway Budget. Train number 6516 was supposed to depart from Mangalore at 8.55 am and reach Yeshwanthpur in Bengaluru at 7.30 pm via Arsikere