18.10.13

Prototype of local train arrives in Mumbai


The prototype of the new-generation stainless steel-bodied rakes finally arrived in the city, but it will take a while before these coaches are put into service on the Mumbai suburban network as they will first undergo trial runs.
The 12-car electric multiple unit is the first of the 72 rakes to be supplied to the Mumbai Railway Vikas Corporation (MRVC) for both Western and Central railways as part of the Mumbai Urban Transport Project-II (MUTP-II) to modernize the fleet and traction system, and augment services. It can run at a maximum speed of 120 kmph, as against 100 kmph of the present Siemens rakes.
These new-age purple coaches are energy-efficient, have better seats, interior lighting and broader windows. The electrical fitting have been provided by Bombardier Transportation and are compatible to run on 25 KV Alternating Current Traction. The rake will be first introduced on Western Railway as it has already switched to 25 Kv AC traction, said a railway official.
“We hope to complete the trials as soon as possible so that inspection certificate from the Research Standards and Designs Organization can be in place by January 2014. We hope to get the two prototype rakes into service by March 2014,” said a senior railway official. Once all approvals are received from the commissioner of railway safety, work on manufacturing three-four rakes can begin by April-May 2014. All this is possible only if there are no glitches during the trial runs.
The much-awaited rakes were flagged off from the Integral Coach Factory in Chennai on October 1, and should have reached Mumbai in seven days, but the arrival got delayed due to the Telengana agitation in Andhra Pradesh.
The prototype was originally scheduled to arrive in the city before March 2013, but delay in getting approval for the designs and other technical issues pushed ahead the date.
The World Bank, which is financing the MUTP-II, had also expressed unhappiness over missing the deadline on delivery of prototype on several occasions.

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