- Surat-Bilimora bullet train service to begin next year.
- Mumbai-Ahmedabad corridor due by 2029.
- Hyderabad to anchor high-speed rail network.
UNION RAILWAY MINISTER Ashwini Vaishnaw said the first section of the Mumbai-Ahmedabad bullet train corridor will begin service next year. The launch marks the first phase of India's first high-speed rail corridor.
The first segment will run between Surat and Bilimora in Gujarat. The remaining sections will be commissioned in phases, starting with Vapi-Surat, followed by Vapi-Ahmedabad, Ahmedabad-Thane, and Ahmedabad-Mumbai, Vaishnaw said at the HYSEA GCCS & IT Roundtable in Hyderabad.
“Our bullet train project is progressing rapidly,” Vaishnaw said. “The first section of the Mumbai-Ahmedabad bullet train will begin operations next year.”
In January, Vaishnaw said the corridor was expected to be fully operational by 2029.
Vaishnaw said India has developed the capability to build bullet trains and that expanding high-speed rail will improve connectivity and regional economic integration.
Vaishnaw said the proposed Mumbai-Pune bullet train corridor would cut travel time on the 170-kilometer route to 48 minutes, while the nearly 500-kilometer trip between Pune and Hyderabad would take about two hours and eight minutes. He said the network would link Mumbai, Pune, Hyderabad, Ahmedabad, Surat, Vapi and Thane into an integrated economic ecosystem.
The 508-kilometer Mumbai-Ahmedabad High-Speed Rail Corridor includes 352 kilometers in Gujarat and Dadra and Nagar Haveli and 156 kilometers in Maharashtra. Trains are expected to operate at about 300 kph, with a design speed of 320 kph, reducing travel time between Mumbai and Ahmedabad to under two hours.
The corridor will have 12 stations, with Sabarmati as the terminal in Gujarat and Bandra Kurla Complex as the terminal in Mumbai. Three depots are under construction.
The high-speed rail corridors will integrate regional economies and reshape urban development, with Hyderabad serving as a hub, Vaishnaw said. Prime Minister Narendra Modi has approved three corridors linked to Hyderabad: Pune-Hyderabad, Hyderabad-Chennai, and Hyderabad-Bengaluru.
Vaishnaw said 261 railway stations have been redeveloped under the Center's "Nav-Nirmaan" program. He said work on Secunderabad railway station is underway while train operations continue, with a focus on safety and quality, including construction of an air concourse above the platforms.
