Mumbai-Mangaluru Vande Bharat train to cut travel time

Indian Railways is set to launch a new Vande Bharat train service connecting Mumbai to Mangaluru. This service will combine the current Mumbai-Goa and Mangaluru-Goa routes. Currently, the trains on these routes see about 70 percent occupancy. The new Mumbai-Mangaluru service aims to make travel faster, allowing passengers to complete their journey in around 12 hours. The Mangaluru-Goa route has lower passenger numbers, with occupancy below 40 percent. Initially, the Railways considered extending this route to Kozhikode, but local political opposition caused them to drop that idea. The Vande Bharat train from Mangaluru to Goa takes about four and a half hours. The Mumbai-Goa train started with a 90 percent occupancy rate but has now dropped to 70 percent. By merging these services, the Railways hopes to increase ridership. Trains between Mumbai and Mangaluru, along with those going to Kerala, are often fully booked. This trend suggests that a direct Vande Bharat service could attract even more passengers. Under the proposed schedule, the Mumbai-Goa train would leave Mumbai at 5:25 am and arrive in Goa at 1:10 pm, continuing to Mangaluru to arrive by 6:00 pm. Similarly, the Mangaluru-Goa train would leave at 8:30 am and reach Goa by 1:10 pm. If it continues to Mumbai, it would arrive there around 9:00 pm. However, arriving in Mumbai at this time could pose challenges. Many long-distance trains arrive at the same time, so schedule adjustments might be needed to accommodate the new service.