Team-BHP - Bullet Train in India - What it means for the country?

Governments pet project - The bullet train gets off the ground today at Sabarmati station in Gujarat. With a loan of 90,000 crores from Japan, it is scheduled to be completed by 2022 when we celebrate 75 years of independence.
The fares would be greater than regular AC trains and expected to be in the range of Rs 3000 - 5000. The project is also expected to generate employment for 20,000 people.
Riding on Japanese Shinkansen high-speed rail technology, it boasts of speeds up to 320km/h and safety features like advanced early stage earthquake sensors to automatically stop the train.
Proposed routes - Mumbai-Ahmedabad, Delhi-Kolkata, Delhi-Mumbai, Mumbai-Chennai, Delhi-Chandigarh, Mumbai-Nagpur, Delhi- Nagpur.

Source - http://economictimes.indiatimes.com/...w/60494630.cms

While the opinion among many seems to be negative for such massive investment in connecting two cities with excellent connectivity, I would like to stick my neck out to highlight how Mumbai-Ahmedabad route is actually the best for starting bullet train.

Mumbai-Ahmedabad route has Shatabdi and Karnavati express for same day return along with other express trains which are scheduled similarly. Also there are good 4-5 early morning flights to and fro these cities. Inspite of all this, Shatabdi train rarely runs with empty seats and it is common to find tatkal tickets running out quickly. Same goes for flights. Next day flight are rarely sold for less than 5k and 7-8k one-way fare is not atypical.

With so much passenger load, it won't be surprising if bullet train is lapped up enthusiastically.

On a national perspective, we desperately need such fast modes of transport. I still remember how traveling to nearby city of Raipur which was 50kms from my hometown 15 years ago used to be a full day affair since roads were horrible. Now though, I decided to go for long drive at 3 PM, went to Raipur, did some sightseeing and came home by 7 PM!

India is a large country and absolutely anything that speeds up travel is more than welcome!

I think fast trains are ideally suited for connectivity between cities that are around 200 to 250 kms apart.

Such distances take too long for bus/car/traditional train travel. Airlines do not connect cities that are 200 to 250 kms apart either. Even if they do, the travel time to airport and 1 hour wait at airport means there is no time advantage when you take a flight.

Excellent financing deal (80% loan, 0.1% interest, 50 year tenure) offered by Japan makes the cost associated with this much more palatable. Next challenge for our PM would be to convince Shinzo Abe to offer Lexus cars at 0.1% interest / 20 year tenure

Quote:

Originally Posted by smartcat (Post 4269675)

I think fast trains are ideally suited for connectivity between cities that are around 200 to 250 kms apart.

And it ideally is the case here too because this is not connecting Mumbai to just Ahmedabad. As per reports, there will be 12 intermediate stations.

So I suspect at least Vapi, Valsad, Navasari, Surat, Bharuch, Ankleshwar, Vadodara, Anand to be the usual suspects and yes, all these cities are heavily industrialized - Small, Medium to large.

Not to forget the Union Territory of Daman & Diu within the proximity of Vapi which itself is an Industrial region due to the sops it gets to enjoy as it is a Union Territory.

In reality, the private traffic on this sector is one of the highest due to concentration of a lot of industries right from Mumbai till Ahmedabad and hence many people travel almost everyday. There is no such thing called "weekend" or "festive" traffic on this sector on all the days.

Also, Mumbai - Ahmedabad sector is one where most of the usual faster trains take up to 7-8 hours to cover a distance of 500 Kms. Something that one does by car too! One of the well utilized dual railway line sections since more than 2 decades now.

This project's main USP would be time to travel and the 'client base' would be the daily travelers who keep driving between these intermediate cities every second day for their business.

The only other sector that comes to my mind is Bangalore - Hosur - Ambur - Vellore -Sireperambudur - Chennai.

PS : I am usually apolitical and my response is based strictly on how this project can actually be helping a section of travelers on this sector.

If Bullet Train really materializes in India, the city I reside in would also be connected. However, its still too much of an expense even at 0.1% interest rate. The time and effort for such connectivity could have been diverted elsewhere in railways itself. Long terms costs including the actual expense of running and maintaining the HSR is yet unknown in India. Wonder when the project will break-even before it makes actual profit.

HSR in face of crumbling urban infrastructure doesn't seem a correct place to put in resources. IMO, the correct or logical outcome of this project will be available over a period of time. However, this project should not become a liability in long run accumulating losses and eventually turning into burden for taxpayers.

You can be certain that there will be two types of high speed trains. Perhaps one that does Mumbai-Surat-Ahmedabad and others that stop at intermittent stations. Time difference between the two runs can be 0.45 hrs. (That is how the bullet trains operate between Beijing and Shanghai)

One issue with bullet trains is that it caters to the daily travellers, meaning that lower space for luggage. I hope they adjust the rake specifications the way Indian crowd travels.

Quote:

Originally Posted by Saanil (Post 4269732)

Are we going to have separate train stations for these high speed trains?

The entire infrastructure for the bullet-train project will be new and yes the timeline is too tight. The existing tracks can't handle bullet trains at all. I do hope that there will be attention on interchange and other connectivity at the same time.

It's good as a start and I am sure more routes will follow but they should simultaneously try to increase effective speeds on existing tracks, it still takes 4 hours to cover Delhi - Chandigarh even on a Shatabdi, despite a distance of only 250 Km and it's more than a decade that people are awaiting extension of Chandigarh Shatabdi to Gurgaon :deadhorse

Any investment in public transport gets my vote, bullet train or whatever it is. It creates jobs and in the long run, will benefit the society at large. I am pretty sure it will be expensive to ride on, and the income generated from this should well be used for funding other projects. After all it is rare that one gets a 0.1% interest loan for 50 years repayment!.

here is always the socialist in us which says money can be spent in making roads where there arent any :) Thats for a different topic. Till then lets hope and pray that timelines are adhered to, unlike our Bangalore metro (Which I am loving it)

Quote:

Originally Posted by Red Liner (Post 4269825)

The next bullet train set up should be between chennai and bangalore for sure. The kind of traffic this sector gets is absolutely insane. I would trade my seat in on a bullet train any time of the day to avoid airport brawls or toll station frustration.

Absolutely. But, there already is a proposal for a high-speed train for the Mysuru — Bengaluru — Chennai corridor by Indian Railway and Germany.
There is a proposal for an international airport in Hosur as well. UDAN 2 if and when it arrives will have Chennai and Bengaluru route within its ambit. The roads are good too.
With this in the works, I seriously doubt this corridor will get the bullet train. Though the volumes of traffic and trade between the cities will justify the investment.

Source - http://economictimes.indiatimes.com/...w/52525878.cms