India’s first bullet train in numbers – Cost, Speed, People, Time, etc

Modi led BJP Government has spearheaded India’s first bullet train project which will significantly reduce travel time between Mumbai and Ahmedabad from existing 7 hours to just 2 hours. This bullet train project was inaugurated by Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe last week in Ahmedabad.

Here, we give you details of how much a project of this magnitude would cost and various other statistics once the bullet train becomes fully functional in the country.

Mumbai Ahmedabad High Speed Rail Project or Bullet Train project as it is being called will entail and investment of INR 1.1 lakh crores. Of this amount, INR 88,000 crores is being financed via a soft loan from Japan with a repayment period of 50 years and interest rate of 0.1% per annum.

The Mumbai Ahmedabad bullet train project is set to commence on 15th August 2022, less than 5 years from now. The first Bullet Train will be flagged off from Ahmedabad. The first such Bullet Train will consist of 10 coaches and have the capacity of 750 passengers. Plans are to increase coaches to 16 and capacity to 1,200 in due course.

35 such trains are being planned, ferrying around 36,000 persons on a daily basis which will be increased to 1,60,000 passengers each day by 2050. The train will travel over 508 kms at an average speed of 250 kmph and a maximum speed of 350 kmph.

There will be two types of trains. One which will halt at four stops and the other which will have 12 stops. These 12 stops are – Mumbai, Thane, Virar, Boisar, Vapi, Bilimora, Surat, Bharuch, Vadodara, Anand, Ahmedabad, and Sabarmati. The train with 12 stops will take about 2 hours and 50 minutes to travel from Ahmedabad and Mumbai while the train with 4 stops will take just 2 hours and 7 minutes.

Of these 508 kms distance, 468 kms will be on elevated tracks running over the regular railway tracks and 27 kms will be through tunnels and 12 kms will be on land. The train will run along a 21 km tunnel of which 7 kms will be go under water at the Thane Creek. Ticket cost is expected to commence at INR 3,000 going upto INR 5,000. There will be a total of approximately 4,000 persons involved in both operation and maintenance.