May 26 2017 : The Times of India (Chennai)

Chennai-Trichy double line: Trains may hit 

100kmph; travel time 4 hrs

Chennai:





Passengers travelling from Chennai Egmore to Trichy could soon see their travel time slashed by up to 33% following the completion of doubling along the stretch by Rail Vikas Nigam Ltd (RVNL), Indian Railways' engineering arm, on May 23 with the commissioning of the 20-km second line between Valadi and Trichy . Trains on the Chennai-Tri chy section can now touch a maximum speed of 100kmph and, with stoppages, the average speed can reach up to 75 kmph, an official said. “Trains can complete the 334 km journey in 4 hours,“ he said. Currently, trains take 5 to 7 hours to complete the journey . The popular overnight train Rockfort Express takes 6:30 hours, while Pandian Express takes 6:30 hours, while Pandian Express takes 5:25 hours. A senior official in the railways' operations department confirmed that top-level officials are discussing proposals to reduce running time by at least 20 to 30 minutes immediately .“Changes in running time are usually made in a timetable revised in October. But because of the completion of doubling, we might revise it within a month,“ the official said.The drop in running time has been possible because line doubling has eliminated a number of stations at which trains have to wait as another train passes through.Some stretches only had a single line. An official in the Trichy division said the maximum section speed of 100kmph can be achieved gradually over a period of 3 to 4 months, according to directions of the Commissioner of Railway Safety (CRS).Due to added line capacity with the completion of doubling, officials now have the scope to increase the number of services by at least 50% to 100%, officials said.