India's first high speed rail project -- the Mumbai-Ahmedabad High Speed Rail Corridor popularly known as Bullet Train -- construction is going on in full swing and the first phase of the advanced train corridor is expected to become operational in 2026. The high-speed train corridor will connect two states including Gujarat and Maharashtra. While the work on section falling in Gujarat is almost complete, the progress in Maharashtra is also advancing.
The foundation stone of the project was laid by Prime Minister Narendra Modi and his Japanese counterpart Shinzo Abe on September 14, 2017. This train corridor is one of Prime Minister's pet project. Once completed, it will put India into the list of elite nations running high speed rail. Let's take a look at some key features of India's first bullet train project.
- The total length of the Mumbai-Ahmedabad bullet train corridor is 508 km out of which 348 km will fall in Gujarat and 156 km in Maharashtra.
- The bullet train will have an operational speed of 320 km per hour.
- The high-speed train corridor will have a total of 12 stations. Out of these 12 stations, eight will be in Gujarat and four in Maharashtra.
- The train will take approximately 2.07 hours to travel between Mumbai and Ahmedabad with limited stops while 2.58 hours with total stops.
- Out of the total 508 km length of the project, the construction of 465 km is being done through viaduct. The bridges comprise 10 km, Bank, Cut and cover 7 km, 21 km will be underground including 7 km undersea and 5 km mountain tunnels.
- Apart from this, 12 aesthetically designed stations, eight maintenance depots, HSR training institute in Vadodara, three rolling stock depots, and High Speed Rail Multi Modal Hub Sabarmati are part of the ambitious project.
- The 12 stations on the Mumbai-Ahmedabad Bullet Train project are: Sabarmati, Ahmedabad, Anand, Vadodara, Bharuch, Surat, Bilimora, Vapi, Boisar, Virar, Thane and Mumbai.
Mumbai-Ahmedabad Bullet Train project. - Viaduct has been raised on a length of 272 km out of the total 508-km-long project between Mumbai and Ahmedabad. The corridor will cross over eight rivers.
- Railway Minister Ashwini Vaishnaw reiterated that the deadline to complete the 50-km-long section between Surat and Billimora is 2026 and the work is progressing according to the schedule.
- The bullet train corridor will integrate big economic centres such as Mumbai, Thane, Vapi, Surat, Vadodara, Anand and Ahmedabad and is good for the country's economic growth.
- The bullet train will pass through a 7-km sea tunnel to reach Mumbai from Thane. The work on the tunnel is in progress.
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