Bullet Train MASSIVE Update: First train likely to run in Gujarat by…, reach Mumbai by..., top speed to be…
Image for representational purposes
New Delhi: In a massive development that promises to boost India's connectivity, the much-anticipated bullet train likely to run in Gujarat between Sabarmati and Vapi by 2028, according to a CNN-News18 report. The report further adds that the full 508-km section from Ahmedabad to Mumbai could run by 2030. The National High Speed Rail Authority (NHSRCL) is earmarking a ridership survey to determine the fare and traffic projections for this bullet train.
As per the document accessed by CNN-News18, the the ridership assessment has been sought for 2028 for the Sabarmati-Vapi section in Gujarat and for the base year 2030, 'the first year of operation' for the entire section between Ahmedabad and Mumbai.
The under-construction Mumbai-Ahmedabad High Speed Rail corridor would be passing through Mumbai-Bandra Kurla Complex (BKC), Thane, Virar, and Boisar in Maharashtra and Vapi, Bilimora, Surat, Bharuch, Vadodara, Anand, Ahmedabad, and Sabarmati in Gujarat—a total of about 508 km. The Gujarat section of the high-speed train route between Vapi and Sabarmati is about 348 km, while the train route in Maharashtra is 156 km.
Earlier, Union Minister Harsh Sanghvi informed that India's ambitious bullet train project between Mumbai and Ahmedabad is well and truly on track as the country's first station in Gujarat's Surat is almost ready. The minister said that trial runs will begin next year while full operations could begin in 2029.
'India's first bullet train station in Surat is almost ready. Trial runs will begin next year, and full service is expected by 2029,' the Minister of State for Home, Industries, Transport, Youth and Sports announced on Twitter. He also shared the latest pictures of the Surat station along with those of various sections of the tracks currently under construction.
It is important to note that his post came just days after the National High Speed Rail Corporation (NHSRCL) informed that 300 km of viaducts, the elevated sections that will carry the high-speed line, were completed with the launch of a 40-metre-long girder near Gujarat's diamond city.
Railway Minister Ashwini Vaishnaw called it a big push for the 508-km-long corridor. 'This is a first for Indian infrastructure, reflecting India's growing capabilities in high-speed rail technology with the support of the Japanese government,' Vaishnaw said.
Out of the total 300 km of the superstructure, 257.4 km has been constructed using the Full Span Launching Method (FSLM), which includes 14 river bridges. Additionally, 37.8 km has been built using the Span by Span (SBS) method, along with 0.9 km of steel bridges, 1.2 km of PSC bridges, and 2.7 km within station buildings, according to the NHSRCL.
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