IRFCA Mailing List Archive
Messages 2221 - 2240
From: Larry Russell <lrussell@direct.email
Subject: YDM3, YDM5 classes.
Date: 19 Feb 1998 04:33:00 -0500
Hello all,
Just got back from India, A trip to Ahmedabad yielded the last 2 YDM3's and
last YDM5 in existence. All three are retired and up for disposal. I had a
talk to the CME at Sabarmati and found that most of the rest of the clan
had been disposed of by 1995. A trip to DLW at Varanasi, we were able to
convince Mr. Gutpa, the General Manager, to save at least on of both
classes. A tour of DLW yielded much new information which I will pass along
as my thoughts get organized.
Sincerely
Larry Russell, Associate Editor, "Extra 2200 South" The Locomotive Newsmagazine
From: Sankar <shankie@emirates.email
Subject: Re: BOMBAY - MADRAS LINE AND A FEW OTHER QUESTIONS
Date: 20 Feb 1998 02:40:00 -0500
Ho Ho, not so fast! let me try and take your points one by one:
1.Why the South is the most neglected? Well thats probably because we South
Indians
are the most docile and timid of the lot, who, apart from cribbing and
whimpering,
are capable of doing no further damage!
Anyway,any discussion of this nature will appear to have political
overtones,so,lets
just accept it as a fact of life.Its also probably because after Bombay and
Poona,the
rest of the route is comparatively sparsely populated as compared to other
trunk routes.
Nontheless, electrification is reportedly in progress on the Bombay-Madras
line.Well,
we start seeing electrification only after we see catenary poles and
electric engines,
but prior to that, the track needs to be strengthened etc. That work is very
much in
progress over the line, including the doubling of track you refer to.
The electrification of the line beyond Poona upto Daund was reported to have
commenced
as on 1-1-96. However, I found no signs of electrification when I visited
India in
November 1997. Probably the re-inforcement bit was in progress,
2. The Bombay-Cape (Kanyakumari) Express follows the same Bombay-Madras
route right
upto Renigunta, and thereafter,ALMOST UPTO Arakonam. It DOES NOT touch
Arakonam Junction station, but turns off JUST SHORT OF Arakonam into the
Arakonam-Katpadi
branch off,then proceeds onto the Katpadi-Jolarpettai-Coimbatiore line.
The other train, the Bombay-Trivandrum Express, goes via Krishnarajapuram,
which is
another station JUST SHORT OF Bangalore, in fact, Bangalore's massive diesel
engine
shed is situated at Krishnarajapuram, and diesels bearing the KJM logo are quite
common in that area. From KJM, the line then proceeds to join the
Erode-Coimbatore
route.
Why trains to the same destination follow different routes? Well, why do
some BEST
routes to South Bombay go via Mohammed Ali Road, some via Pedder Road, some
via Opera
House? Why do some trains to VT go via main line, some via harbor line? Same
principle.
To provide service to a more wide populace, thats all.
3.On similar lines, you may be interested to note the following about the
following
four trains running almost similar destinations:
While the Rajkot-Cochin and Gandhidham-Nagercoil Expresses go via Bassein
(Vasai)-Bhivandi-Kalyan-Poona-Daund route, they go via Bangalore City.The
Rajkot-Trivandrum Express does the IDENTICAL route, but does not touch
Bangalore,but
branches off just short of it through Krishnarajapuram instead, while the fourth
train, the Ahmedabad-Bangalore Express, takes a totally different
route,going via
Surat-Jalgaon-Manmad-Daund-Guntakal!
4.The Kalka-Mail follows the more direct and shorter route of
Howrah-Asansol-Dhanbad-
Gaya-Dehri on Sone-Mughalsarai-Allahabad-Kanpur-Aligarh-Delhi.
The longer and more circuitous mail line route is
Howrah-Asansol-Patna-Mughalsarai-Aligarh-Delhi.i.e., via Patna.
Best regards.
Shankar.
At 02:18 PM 2/19/98 +0530, you wrote:
>OF All the major trunk routes why is the Bombay - Madras, Bombay
>-Bangalore, Bombay -Trivandrum is the most neglected route of the IR ?
>why is it so ? The trains go via Branch line in Andhra while the Delhi
>Madras route goes via mainline Andhra. Does the Mumbai - Kanyakumari
>express go all the way to Arakkonam and then proceed to Trivandrum.
>The weeklly Mumbai Trivandrum express goes via Krishna rajapuram i.e very
>near to Bangalore. Why different routes are followed by trains going to
>same destinations. When will the Mumbai - Madras route will be doule line
>and when will it Be having electrified traction. Then we can atleast have
>Mumbai Bangalore and Mumbai Madras superfast expresses may be shatabdi's !
>This means that the lines beyond Solapur have to be doubled and
>electrification has to start from Poona. May be Mr Kalmadi if elected
>will do the needful for us. Will the Kanyakumari express be diverted via
>Konkan Railway.
>
>What is the Chord route which the Howrah Kalka mail follows ? What is the
>alternative route. Some info please.
>
>Thanks,
>
>P.P.SAKLATWALLA.
>EXTN :4226/4232/4237
>
>
>
>
From: Sankar <shankie@emirates.email
Subject: Re: Superfast trains
Date: 20 Feb 1998 02:40:00 -0500
A) I've said this before,and I say this again, the number of stops has no
bearingat all in qualifying a train to be classed as a superfast.Rather, the
criteriaare it should run at the MAXIMUM PERMISSIBLE SPEED over that
particular route,irrespective of teh number of stops, and moreover,its
overall average speed should be a minimum of 55 kmph.Anyway, I think Dheeraj
has already replied in detail,so I shall not comment any further.
B) I shall touch upon mail trains in a separate e-mail.
C) Yes, do post me the Friends of the NRM articles as youmention.
My postal address is: S.Shankar,
P.o.Box 2144,
Dubai, UAE.
Thanks and best regards.
Shankar.
At 01:47 PM 2/19/98 +0530, you wrote:
>As there is so much discussion going on regarding this topic let me put in
>a few of my thoughts on this subject
>1. The IR has fixed a deadline of 55 kmph for superfasts. The Mumbai -
>Poona Deccan Queen, Pragati Express, Indrayani Express and Ofcourse the
>Shatabdi Express, all used to take the same time to reach its destination
>Poona. Then Mr Amroliwalla sued IR : the noble soul that he is, and
>Indrayani and Pragati were reverted to normal trains. Though Indrayani
>has added Kalyan to its halts, The Pragati still goes to Poona in 3 1/2
>hrs ? then why is it that Deccan Queen is still a superfast and Pragati is
>not ? Ridiculous isn't it.
>
>2. The Punjab Mail takes about 25 hours to reach NDLS BUT IS still a
>super fast train its no being 2137 Dn /2138 Up. How is this possible ?
>
>3. The 1063 Dn Dadar Madras Chennai express has very few halts, unlike the
>other Madras Express then how come the Speed of Chennai is not 55 Kmph and
>above and why is it not designated as a superfast.
>
>4. The Madras Bangalore Brindavan express is really a train which halts
>at almost all stns enroute to Bangalore and vice versa, then on what
>grounds is it a SF ? for your info even the Kalka howrah mail is a
>tortoise then on what grounds is it still a SF
>
>From my members I had earlier asked that why no more mails are introduced
>on IR ? The mails were once considered to be very special trains ! Then
>why this sudden dearth of mails. My school days fondly makes me go back
>to the days when we used the Poona mail. Can somebody please explain this
>to me.
>
>I have just recd a qtrly news letter from THE FRIENDS OF THE NATIONAL RAIL
>MUSEUM The following are the important points in this news letter.
>
>There is a plan to open rail museums at Mumbai Chennai and Varanasi. This
>will enable new entrants to be placed appropriately and provide new vistas
>to the enthusiasts who are away from Delhi but are closer to these
>places.
>
>DID YOU KNOW THAT : NEW JALPAIGURI is a unique station on the N.E.F. RLY
>of the IR by the fact that it has 3 guages present at the same place B.G.
>(5'6") M.G. 3'3 3/8" and N.G 2'0". The B.G. TRUNK ROUTE OF N.F.RLY from
>Malda town to Guwhati and onwards to Dibrugarh runs thru NPJ. This stn
>has a huge marshalling yard and also some spl Indian oil and FCI sidings.
>The famous Darjeeling himalyan rail originates from here and the coaches
>of the DHR were recently painted in red and yellow livelry and also in
>green and white livelry. (must be looking beautiful) It is noted that a
>B class 787-0-4-0 saddle tank loco has been frequently put to work.
>
>
>IMPORTANT TO ALL AT IRFCA.
>-------------------------
>
>
>FRIENDS OF THE NATIONAL RAIL MUSEUM IS AN INFORMAL SOCIETY OF RAILWAY
>---------------------------------------------------------------------
>ENTHUSIASTS, KEEN TO SHARE A COMMON PLATFORM TO EXCHANGE VIEWS AND FURTHER
>THEIR KNOWLEDGE ON THE SUBJECT OF RAILWAYS. HON CHAIRMAN, RAILWAY BOARD
>IS THE CHIEF PATRON OF FNRM, STEAM TRACTION, THE RAISON D'ETRE FOR MOST
>ENTHUSIASTS OCCUPIES A PROMINENT PLACE IN THE INTEREST OF THE FRNM THOUGH
>OTHER FORMS OF TRACTION, ROLLING STOCK IS NOT NEGLECTED.
>THE FRNM PUBLISHES A QUARTERLY NEWSLETTER WHICH WILL TAKE SHAPE AS A
>JOURNAL IN THE FUTURE.
>
>THE FRNM MEMBERS MEET ON SECOND SUNDAYS OF THE MONTH AT 11.OO AM AT THE
>LIBRARY OF THE NATIONAL RAIL MUSEUM NEW DELHI.
>ENTRY FEE (ONE TIME IS RS 25/- ) AND RS 25/-PER ANNUM AS MEMBERSHIP FEES,
>WHICH INCLUDES A NEWSLETTER POSTED AT AN INLAND ADDRESS.
>
>MEMBERSHIP OF THOSE RESIDING OUTSIDE INDIA IS RS 100/ PER ANNUM WITH THE
>NEWSLETTER POSTED AT AN OVERSEAS ADDRESS BY AIR MAIL.
>
>FOR FURTHER DETAILS AND MEMBERSHIP FORMS MAY BE COLLECTED FROM MR.
>V.K.SIAL, SR LIBRARIAN, NRM OR BY WRITING TO THE SECRETARY, FNRM, B-7,
>69/1, SAFDARJUNG ENCLAVE NEW DELHI 110029.
>ANSWER PHONE /FAX - 0091-011 6167831.
>
>LOCALLY YOU MAY GET FURTHER DETAILS FROM ME BY CALLING UP ON MY RESIDENCE
>TEL NO. 022 2654670 0R EMAIL ME AT pps@godrejnet.email along with your
>telephone no and addresss, so that I can post you a copy of the aims and
>objectives of the FRIENDS OF THE NATIONAL RAIL MUSEUM .
>
>PLEASE NOTE MY OFFICE TEL NOS.
>5773535/3636 EXTN 4226/4232/4237.
>
> O R
>
>
>RES : 022- 2654670 THESE ARE MUMBAI NOS.
>
>EMAIL : pps@godrejnet.email
>
>will be soon be with you once again.
>
>
>
>P.P.SAKLATWALLA.
>EXTN :4226/4232/4237
>
>
>
>
From: Pushkar Apte <apte@spdc.email
Subject: Trivandrum Rajdhani
Date: 19 Feb 1998 06:44:00 -0500
This new Rajdhani certainly has a strange halt pattern, and IMO stranger
timings. It would have been much better to schedule this train to leave
@ say 17:10 from Nizamuddin, right on the tail of the AK Rajdhani Exp.,
and minimize disturbance of other trains on the route. Plus it would
reach Ernakulam at a decent hour (Mangalore ~23:00). In the current
timings, it will overtake the superfast Frontier Mail, and other trains
like Dehradun Exp, Avadh Exp, Saurashtra Janata Exp etc.- unnecessarily
screwing up their schedules. Also, Vadodara Exp. timing will need to
change. Plus the train is terrible for passengers from Mumbai wanting
to go South via Vasai/Panvel. Because in keeping with patterns,
whatever Mumbai-South train is introduced on KR, it will be super-slow,
probably taking twice as long as the Rajdhani. And the Rajdhani itself
doesn't seem very fast on the Vasai/Panvel-Ernakulam stretch - I
certainly don't see any 160 kmph runs.... Can anybody post the
Panvel-Madgaon-Mangalore distance? Trains-at-a-glance is conveniently
missing this info - probably to not publicize the chargeable vs actual
difference.
-Pushkar
Regards,
Pushkar
-------
From: Sankar <shankie@emirates.email
Subject: THE EXTINCT LOT OF MAIL TRAINS
Date: 20 Feb 1998 02:46:00 -0500
Poras, you have been asking about mail trains off and on.
Why are they disappearing? The answer is this:
1. In those good old days, the Railway Mail Service, or RMS, was a full fledged
division of the post office. In fact,the mail van on those trains of yesteryear
used to function as full fledged post office.Well, almost. Functions included
mail collection, sorting, stamp cancellation, offloading mail for specific
areas en-route and collecting mail therefrom,again sorting them,etc.You could
even post letters in a slot on the slide of the mail van.A note above the slot
used to say "Letters can be posted here on payment of late fee". A peek inside
one of of these mail vans, usually one complete car painted scarlet red,and
one could see a full complement of staff, performing all post office
functions.The car was complete with pigeon-hole letter cabinet and all.
With manifold increase in mail traffic, coupled with squeezed schedules of
trains, the whole operation was rendered too cumbrous and troublesome, not to
mention difficulties experienced in working within the cramped confines of the
car.And additional costs involved.
It was therefore decided to do all the dirty work of sorting etc. at a central
mail collection centre (usually the head post office) on the ground itself,and
use trains to CARRY mail only. All the sort-while-on-the-move etc. operations
came to an end,and with that,so also the significance of mail trains.
Nowadays, the RMS car is used merely as parcel or sackfulls-of-letters-
carrying cars. Today, a peek into such a car only shows sack upon sack of
letters and parcels, and bored attendants on board merely to offload and
take-on-board pre-destined sacks:their job is only to ensure they are offloaded
and loaded on properly.
That way nowadays,almost any train (barring superfasts or other trains in the
event of more than one train over a route) carrys mail, including express trains
and stopping passenger trains.
Very often,the RMS (mail carrying car) is merely an ordinary second class car
requisitioned for the purpose.
2. On similar lines, you will notice that Restaurant cars (or Dining Cars as
they were called) are disappearing too, to be replaced with what were called
Kitchen cars (Rasoi Yaan), now going by the more catchy name of Pantry car.
Rather than run a full fledged restaurant on board, maintaining all the
paraphernalia, including a complement of waiters and starched linen etc.,and
then spend the rest of the time shooing off lower class passengers,it was
decided to do away with restaurant cars themselves.
Moreover, in a rapidly emerging classless society, lower class passengers are
entitled to their pound of flesh too.
It was therefore decided to have a centrally located pantry cum kitchen car and
to serve meals therefrom to all classes of passengers at their seats.
Gone are those days of notes in the timetables : "dining car for the use of
upper class passengers will be attached to xxx dn Mail between x station and
y station between 1830 hrs and 2130 hrs only" etc.
And all said and done, the consideration is commercial too.Whyshould the
railways foot the bill for an expensive car for the upper classes only when a
lot more money can be made by offering a simiar services to more people from
one location?
Best regards.
Shankar.
From: Vijay.Balasubramanian <Vijay.Balasubramanian@xula.email
Subject: Re: Trivandrum Rajdhani
Date: 19 Feb 1998 11:29:00 -0500
This train is a bit of an upstart between Nizamuddin and Vasai,
ignoring important stations such as Kota and Surat. These are big
enough to warrant a Rajdhani-type service to the Konkan region and
further South. I am sure they will get added later along with
Calicut and a few others.
The halts at Vasai Rd. and Panvel will be welcomed by residents of the
Northern suburbs of Mumbai (Borivali, Goregaon, Andheri, .....) and
New Bombay, respectively. In fact, they would be prefer traveling by
this train from Delhi/Baroda till Vasai/Panvel and then catching locals
to their respective stations. At present, passengers traveling on the
Mumbai Raj. / A.K.Raj would have to make this change at Mumbai Central
which may be quite far from their nearest local stop. I looked through
the suburban time-table of 1995 and realized that there is a local
departing from Virar around 3.55 am, reaching Vasai at 4.05 am. This
could provide the connection for the Trivandrum Raj. travelers bound
for Mumbai. There is another local around 4.20 am.
This Raj. takes around 5 hrs. from Vadodara to Vasai, whereas the
Mumbai Raj. does it in about 4 hrs. IMHO, this extra time is to ensure
that the former always gets to Vasai on time so that the connecting
local is not missed.
Have they started operating locals from Panvel to Mumbai CST? Or
is Khandeshwar still the last stop? Since Panvel has/will have direct
locals to places like Belapur,Vashi,Chembur, Kurla,.... this Rajdhani
might be prefered over any other train from Delhi to Mumbai Central.
> ALSO REGARDING THE TIMMING OF BCT-ADI SHATABDI.
> IT IS MUCH SLOWER THAN THE RAJDHANI BETWEEN BCT-VADODRA.
> BCT-NDI RAJDHANI TAKES 4HRS 32 MINUTES WHERE AS SHATABDI TAKES 5HRS.
FOR THE
> SAME JOURNEY.ISN'T SHATABDI SUPPOSED TO BE THE FASTEST TRAIN CURRENTLY
OR
> ATLEAST AT PAR WITH RAJDHANI.
> ONLY GUJRAT EXP. COMES IN THE WAY BET. SHATABDI SO THERE IS NO TRAFFIC
> COMING IN WAY OF IT.CAN ANYONE TELL ME WHY IT IS SO?
Both the Rajdhani and Shatabdi have a max. speed of 120 kmph. in the
Mumbai-Vadodara section. However, the Shatabdi has 4 halts between
Mumbai and Vadodara which consume nearly 20 mts. (includes actual halt
times + time lost in acceleration/deceleration). So, the actual
Mumbai-to-Vadodara run-time is about 4 hrs. 40 mts. - 10 mts. more than
the Rajdhani. Moreover, there isn't always a WCAM2 available for
the Shatabdi so it gets hauled by a WCAM1 once-in-while. So, the BOOKED
speed of the Shatabdi may only be 110 kmph. between Virar and Vadodara,
whereas the Rajdhani's BOOKED speed is 115 kmph. between Virar and
Vadodara.
Vijay
From: Sundar Krishnamurthy <coolsundar@hotmail.email
Subject: The 2627 Karnataka Express
Date: 19 Feb 1998 09:48:00 -0500
Hello folks..
Keeping up with the current animated debate on superfasts and the
pathetic step-daughtered Mumbai-South corridor, an analysis of the only
decent superfast on the route, barring the Rajdhani, is presented...
The 2627/28 21 coach double-WDM2 headed Bangalore-New Delhi Karnataka
Express! Its been around for some time. Here is the shortened time table
and average speed across major sections.. I had the opportunity of doing
this train from Bangalore to Daund a few years ago.
I only present the departure timings. But for the average speed, I
discount the stoppage interval and count only the running time.
2627 kms Station Avg running speed between stations
18 25 0 Bangalore
68.7
22 00 235 Dharmavaram
62.6
00 15 376 Guntakal
47.8 (most pathetic stretch)
02 52 497 Raichur
47.9
08 30 755 Solapur
66
11 30 942 Daund
56 <not quite midway, almost!>
15 55 1180 Manmad
63.11
12 10 2458 New Delhi
----------------------------------
Total Distance : 2458 kms.
Avg Schedule Speed : 58.98 kmph (Hence a superfast!)
Running Time from Bangalore to Daund
942 kms. Total : 16.841 hours
Avg Speed : 55.93 kmph incl. stops (barely makes the grade)
Running time from Daund to Manmad
238 kms : 66 kmph (Great speed on a neglected chord!)
Running time from Manmad to New Delhi
1278 kms total : 63.11 kmph incl. stops (quite good!)
-------------------------------------
The train is majestic&multi-colored with a largely northie crowd that
inhabits the cyber-lanes of silicon city Bangalore. The amenities on the
train are similar to any other superfast - a pantry car, three AC
coaches, one or two FC coaches and tons of SL cars. The twin WDM2 up
front used to be Krishnarajapuram. It's now CR's headache to power the
train and Itarsi locos share the honors.
Analysis of the TT concentrates on the Bangalore-Daund run, that is
common with the Mumbai-Chennai from Gooty to Daund.. a distance of 594
kms.
Glaring slow stretches occur between Guntakal and Solapur .. both SCR
and CR are to be blamed. SCR administers the Guntakal route to Wadi and
CR takes on from Wadi to Solapur and onward. The train travels for
379 kms at an avg speed of 47.85 kmph! If it were not for fast stretches
on double tracked CR North, she would be stripped of her exalted status
of SuperFast and join the lowly ranks of an Udyan and a Netravati. In
fact, the CR stretch from Solapur to Wadi STILL USES long
arm semaphore signals!! (And they call it a trunk line(?) and talk of
ELECTRIFICATION!!! Ha Ha Ha)
However, single line crossings make NO distinction. In fact, I recall a
recent trip on the evening Dadar Exp. to Chennai.. the New Delhi
Karnataka, already late, waited for us patiently at Martur - a small
halt between Wadi and Gulburga on the single line stretch!
Also, if Udyan can do Bangalore Daund in 17 hrs, and maybe Daund-Mumbai
in five.. you could pull up Udyan by a couple of hours!
If you're on the 2627, don't miss the curve immediately after Daund
where the train moves right, northward on a sharp curve leaving the
Mumbai double line. Its a heavenly sight to watch the diesels pull up
and hum up a rhythm on a sharp curve from the running train!! There is
no alternative to these Alco beauties that DLW makes!
Also spotted a WDG2 whose photos should be up anytime, alongwith a
unique liveried WAG7 from SE, Bhilai that I captured at Basin Bridge
Junction.
Sundar Krishnamurthy
--------------------------------------------------------------------
Sundar Krishnamurthy ("`-''-/").___..--''"`-._
9/66, Welfare Hse, Sion (W), `6_ 6 ) `-. ( ).`-.__.`)
Mumbai 400 022. INDIA (_Y_.)' ._ ) `._ `. ``-..-'
Tel : +91 +22 4071254 _.. `--'_..-_/ /--'_.' ,'
coolsundar@hotmail.email (il),-'' (li),' ((!.-'
<A HREF="http://sundar.home.ml.org">http://sundar.home.ml.org</A>
-------------------------------------------Today is the day of glory
-----------------------------------------The Code is the whole story
______________________________________________________
Get Your Private, Free Email at <A HREF="http://www.hotmail.com">http://www.hotmail.com</A>
From: Sridhar Shankar <msshanka@gsbmba2.email
Subject: Re: The 2627 Karnataka Express
Date: 19 Feb 1998 12:46:00 -0500
Sundar,
>Its a heavenly sight to watch the diesels pull up
>and hum up a rhythm on a sharp curve from the running train!! There is
>no alternative to these Alco beauties that DLW makes!
There is no better sight on IR than watching a pair of WDM2s haul a full
rake. Actually, the WDM2s sound the best standing still - giving a new
meaning to the term ticking over. New diesels just don't have the
same charm. It is a real pity that only a few such trains remain.
Another such sight (when Brindavan was double headed) was the sharp right
hander past Jolarpet (towards BLR).
Its unfortunate that DLW will switch to EMD Diesels in the future.
-Sridhar
****************************************************************
Graduate School of Business Sridhar Shankar
University of Chicago 5345 S.Harper Apt. 205
Chicago, IL 60637 Chicago, IL 60615
USA (773) 752 1131
*****************************************************************
From: Sundar Krishnamurthy <coolsundar@hotmail.email
Subject: All's not lost! There's time left!
Date: 19 Feb 1998 10:58:00 -0500
Hello Guys!
SR does not plan to immediately kill the SR MG Express Corridor. They're
doing a slow death scene by slowly dismembering different parts for
gauge expansion.
Today, the trains that expire in their MG form are :
6717/6718 Chennai Egmore Madurai Pandyan Express
6103/6104 Chennai Egmore Madurai Express
6119/6120 Chennai Egmore Tirunelveli Nellai Express
2605/2606 Chennai Egmore Madurai Vaigai Express (yes. No More Vaigai)
2637/2638 Chennai Egmore Madurai Kudal Express
All this is being done because the Madurai BG station and the
Mayiladuturai chord conversion is done and ready. All the remaining
trains will be diverted via Villupuram and Mayiladuturai through the
chord. The new BG plates will now come on at the
Villupuram-Trichy-Madurai link.
The trains that survive by diversion are
6877/6878 Trichy Rock Fort Express
Now via Villupuram, Mayiladuturai
6713/6714 Rameswaram Sethu Express
Now via Villupuram, Mayiladuturai, Karaikudi
6105/6106 Quilon Mail
Same as above
6719/6120 Mahal Express
Same as above, but Trichy/Thanjavur touched.
After this is through, in about two months time, the remaining trains
would also be suspended for the most important link - the
Chennai-Chengalpattu-Villupuram trunk corridor.
To enable Chennai-Madurai Commutation, SR meanwhile has started three
new trains from Central to Madurai and Mayiladuturai.
6737/6738 Chennai Madurai Express, via ML
6711/6712 Madurai Express (through Jolarpettai, Erode, Karur, Trichy)
6801/6802 Mayiladuturai Express
----------------------------------------------------------------
>>>
But however friendly, no driver has ever allowed me to photograph inside
the shed or in the locomotive's cab.
How on earth did you manage to catch that wheelside view of the YDM
(this
photographer is only 165 cm----),and the cab interior?
>>>
--------------------------------------------------------------
Well, I took the YDM4 photos by stealth .. there was nobody near the
loco when I invaded.. I had no other possesions on my trainspotting trip
to Chengalpattu. I was prepared to run for miles if spotted.
I normally put on the show of a person badly in need of a secluded spot
behind an isolated train to relieve oneself.. Nobody bothers then! I
also plan to zero into the Basin Bridge Yard and meet people out there..
I've got to be ready. Sneaking and stealth or photos at loco sheds is a
big NO-NO. Its imprisonment time and RPF people listen to NO pleading!!
----------------------------------------------------------------
>>>
I'm impatiently awaiting the arrival of your next lot of pictures.In the
meantime,would you care to share with me some of the photography
aspects, like which camera you usually use, what has been your modus
operandi etc.
Sort of compare notes!
Best regards,and keep'em rollin' in!
>Shankar.
>>>
--------------------------------------------------------------------
The camera used to take these photos is an unbelievable Rs. 750 Fuji
no-zoom camera with flash and manual forward and roll rewind. Actually
the flash is of no use on outdoor pursuits! I prefer hanging out of the
train with face stretched out and finding something nice to click.
Pls. don't tell my parents about this aspect of rail photography :-)
Regards,
Sundar Krishnamurthy
______________________________________________________
Get Your Private, Free Email at <A HREF="http://www.hotmail.com">http://www.hotmail.com</A>
From: Prakash Tendulkar <prakash@us.email
Subject:
Date: 19 Feb 1998 15:01:00 -0500
> The halts at Vasai Rd. and Panvel will be welcomed by residents of the
> Northern suburbs of Mumbai (Borivali, Goregaon, Andheri, .....) and
> New Bombay, respectively. In fact, they would be prefer traveling by
> this train from Delhi/Baroda till Vasai/Panvel and then catching locals
> to their respective stations. At present, passengers traveling on the
> Mumbai Raj. / A.K.Raj would have to make this change at Mumbai Central
> which may be quite far from their nearest local stop. I looked through
> the suburban time-table of 1995 and realized that there is a local
> departing from Virar around 3.55 am, reaching Vasai at 4.05 am.
The problem is this local knows as "Milk Special" is okay for residents
in Vasai-Virar zone. The down local from Churchgate arrives an hour after
Rajdhani leaves Vasai. That means commuters from Mumbai have to stay
overnight on Vasai platform for at least 3 hours, even if they come by
the last Virar local from Churchgate.
Prakash
Notes Address: Prakash Tendulkar/Santa Teresa/IBM@IBMUS
VM Address: IBMUSM50(PRAKASH)
Internet Address: prakash@us.email
Phone: (408)463-3536
DB2 Technical Consultant, Vendor Partnership Program
From: Sundar Krishnamurthy <coolsundar@hotmail.email
Subject: Trainsets!!
Date: 19 Feb 1998 11:13:00 -0500
Hello All!!
I spotted a unique trainset a few days ago.. people pls. intimate me if
any more similar expresses exist.
The Tirupati Chennai Saptagiri Express is a beautiful fully yellow train
(like the 6529 Brindavan of yore) with a green band towards the bottom,
that abruptly diverges in the middle. Its got a matching Arrakkonam
WAM4P IN THE SAME LIVERY with the matching band design.
Well, the train travels engine upfront on its journey to Chennai. But,
on the return path, the last coach guard room doubles up as a loco
control, with the driver and guard swapping places. The engine now
pushes from the rear, and it is controlled by the driver at the other
end of the train!!! This is a proper express - but the sight of a
electric loco doing services at the back of a train drives me crazy. I
was actually shocked when I casually peeked out of my express and
encountered this train!
Is this the IR inter-city model? They normally employed such stunts for
DMU's with a WDM2 in the middle and either end train control. But
electrics?? Why can't they simply use EMU locals?? If 150 odd kms. (the
Chennai Tirupati) is long, then CR DC EMUs on the Kasara route do 121
kms! Why make a caricature out of the bland end of a WGSCNY Kapurthala
coach?? I am positively REPULSED by the design adopted for end cabs of
push-pull style units. Ugh!! Give us a BREAK!!!
Sundar
______________________________________________________
Get Your Private, Free Email at <A HREF="http://www.hotmail.com">http://www.hotmail.com</A>
From: Sundar Krishnamurthy <coolsundar@hotmail.email
Subject: Apologies for the error
Date: 19 Feb 1998 11:41:00 -0500
Sorry Guys..
Sleep got the better of me. Read that as the 6529 Udyan
> 6529 Brindavan of yore
^^^^^^^^^
Regards,
Sundar
______________________________________________________
Get Your Private, Free Email at <A HREF="http://www.hotmail.com">http://www.hotmail.com</A>
From: Auroprem Kandaswami <kandaswa@apple.email
Subject: Konkan Rly. to spur industrialisation
Date: 19 Feb 1998 11:15:00 -0500
THE HINDU
February 20, 1998
The journey from Kochi to Mumbai by the recently commissioned
Konkan rail (regular direct services will start from March 21)
has been reduced by 513 kms and travel time by 12 hours. The distance
saved in the Mangalore-Mumbai sector is a whopping 1,127 km and time
saved is 26 hours. The route till now was through Kerala, Tamil
Nadu, Andhra Pradesh, Karnataka and Maharashtra. The benefits
do not end here. The rail line is expected to spin industrialisation
along the entire West coast. The KRC estimated a passenger
traffic of 21.197 million in 1998 which would go upto 26.988
million by the turn of the century. Goods traffic was expected to
reach 16.768 million tonnes from 7.405 million tonnes this year.
The Chief Engineer of the Konkan Railway, Mr. R. Richardson Asir,
based in Karwar told a group of journalists that further
development of the line would be linked to the pace of
industrialisation. The commissioning of the Roha-Mangalore link
would provide the shortest route from the northern/western
parts of the country to a number of south-west coastal
destinations. And a substantial portion of goods traffic would be
via Konkan Railway. This would include foodgrains from Punjab,
Haryana, Gujarat and Rajasthan and cement, fabrics and other
manufactured goods from Gujarat and Rajasthan to southern
areas. Forest produce and manufactured goods would be sent in
the reverse direction. Konkan Railway would also give relief to
Mumbai and Kochi ports by providing rail link to Mangalore,
Karwar and Mormugoa ports. This would lead to an increase in
imports and exports from the hinterland area around the
Konkan Railway routes.
Mr. Asir said the Konkan region was rich in minerals but did not
see development for want of a effective bulk transportation
infrastructure. Now the Konkan Railway would play the role. A
beginning had already taken place with plans to set up a steel
plant at Satarda and a thermal power project near Nandikur.
These giant projects would spin off a number of ancilliary
industries in the surrounding areas. The commissioning of a HPCL
siding at Thokur near Mangalore was another benefit.
Various State Governments are expected to place requests for
setting up rail link facilities in potential `industrialisation' areas.
The Karnataka Government had sought rail link at Karwar port.
The KRC was operating cargo handling terminals at Chiplun,
Ratnagiri, Kudal, Verna, Karwar and Udupi.
The Konkan region, primarily an agricultural area, had started
receiving fertilizers from Maharashtra and Gujarat through the
rail line.
Mr. Asir said the KRC planned to set up a container depot at
Verna. Efforts were also being made to transport refrigerated
containers carrying marine products and alphonso mangoes on
the Mangalore-Mormugao- Verna-Ratnagiri-JNPT line. A
freight forward scheme would be introduced soon.
The rail line would help in the movement of about 3.6 million
tonnes of coal per annum from Mangalore Port to the thermal
plant proposed to be set up at Nandikur by Cogentrix; transport
of iron ore, limestone, and other raw materials as well as finished
products for an integrated steel plant of three mllion tonnes
capacity in Ratnagiri district for which feasibility studies were
being carried out; and supply of about three million tonnes of
coal from Mangalore port for a power plant of Nagarjuna Power
Corporation Limited at Nandikur.
Industrial traffic this March on the Konkan line is expected to be
3.3 million tonnes.
From: Sundar Krishnamurthy <coolsundar@hotmail.email
Subject: Re: Ugh!! Give us a break!
Date: 19 Feb 1998 19:51:00 -0500
Hi Jayant..
>I echo that "Ugh" !! If a WGSCNY type coach is on the end, though,
>how is the driver keeping a lookout ? As far as I know, only
>inspection stock on IR has windows at a coach-end.
>Otherwise, I guess IR is still thinking of the British pattern for
>intermediate-distance trains: the "push-pull" method as opposed to MU
>working..............
The coaches of a push-pull train at each end has its toilets removed to
create a makeshift cab for the driver/motorman. Rectangular windows are
drilled into the end to give visibility to the driver. The controls and
gear in the cab are coupled through wires running through the length of
the train, to the motive engine, either in the middle (DMU) or at the
back(Saptagiri). A horrid curve resembling the Indian economy comes from
both sides to symmetrically meet at the center on the front of the
coach. I'll be posting some pics. You gotta see it to believe IR design.
What are the creative capablities of RDSO??
I don't know!!
Push pull trains for short distances on electrified routes are
redundant, when you have the EMU.
Sundar Krishnamurthy
______________________________________________________
Get Your Private, Free Email at <A HREF="http://www.hotmail.com">http://www.hotmail.com</A>
From: sank <sank@telco.email
Subject: Re: Ugh!! Give us a break!
Date: 20 Feb 1998 21:09:00 -0500
> .......You gotta see it to believe IR design.
> What are the creative capablities of RDSO??
Good question, Sundar. I do not doubt that IR has shown tremendous
engineering sense at times (regarding masterstrokes such as standardising
WDM2 power trucks on the WAM4s, etc), but they do not project an aesthetic
component to design. Railway administrations in the developed countries
have long retained industrial design departments, which look into
everything
from locomotive appearances to ergonomics. This possibly became important
earlier
over there because of airline competition. In India there is not such
pressing need
yet. Of course, if IR were to set up a design group....(just a little plug
for the
career I was trained towards !!), it would be possible to address carriage
layouts
and seating, locomotive appearance, instrumentation layouts and human
factors,
train liveries and signage..........and there are enough trained industrial
design professionals
emerging from IDC and NID who would be able to handle such things.
> Push pull trains for short distances on electrified routes are
> redundant, when you have the EMU.
I was thinking of the British Inter-City 225, hauled by class 91 (?)
electric locos with
a driving trailer at the other, being a well-known example of
purpose-designed high-speed
push-pull operation (and a decidedly better-looking one than the flanged
horror
you describe !!). Ideal for trips between 100-400 km which require a
quick turnaround, but
in which the length of the rake can be varied by including or removing
normal coaching stock
with control cabling (something you cannot do easily with an EMU). Question
is, do any routes in
India really require this sort of train working ?
--
Jayant S*ID Studio*TTIL*TELCO
Pimpri*Pune 411 018*INDIA*tel:91-212-774261 exn 2534
Email me at "sank@telco.email. Do NOT use your "reply" button !
From: Sankar <shankie@emirates.email
Subject: Re: Trainsets!!
Date: 20 Feb 1998 18:57:00 -0500
Sundar,the train you refer to is the Madras-Tirupati Express, which is I think
India's first example of a push-pull train, where the engine pulls one way,and
pushes from the rear on the return journey.I'm not sure whether any more such
expresses exist.
The idea of this train was to avoid a long halt of at least 15 minutes at
Renigunta
while waiting for the engine to come round to this end before making the
short 15
minute run to Tirupati.
Even now, the push pull halts for ten minutes at Renigunta, so its probably more
for the convenience angle, for after all, why go through the rigmarole for a
mere 15 minute run?
The IR specifies that toilets be provided on trains for any run which
exceeds 100
km, which is why emus cannot do this run. (In that case,the 121 km Karjat-
Bombay run is a special case.) Its for this very same reason that emu
services were
withdrawn on the Bombay-Poona line. Such services did exist in the 1930s,
before
this rule came into force.
Facts of life, like it or not, you have to get used to the business end of these
trains,for they are now IR standard.The end cab design you're repulsed by is
now the
same which is being used on diesel push-pulls (with the diesel coupled
mid-rake),
d.m.u. units,(a more polished version,like emus),MEMUs (Main Line emu) and
electric
push pulls, like the one in question.
Best regards.
Shankar.
At 01:13 PM 2/19/98 PST, you wrote:
>Hello All!!
>
>I spotted a unique trainset a few days ago.. people pls. intimate me if
>any more similar expresses exist.
>
>The Tirupati Chennai Saptagiri Express is a beautiful fully yellow train
>(like the 6529 Brindavan of yore) with a green band towards the bottom,
>that abruptly diverges in the middle. Its got a matching Arrakkonam
>WAM4P IN THE SAME LIVERY with the matching band design.
>
>Well, the train travels engine upfront on its journey to Chennai. But,
>on the return path, the last coach guard room doubles up as a loco
>control, with the driver and guard swapping places. The engine now
>pushes from the rear, and it is controlled by the driver at the other
>end of the train!!! This is a proper express - but the sight of a
>electric loco doing services at the back of a train drives me crazy. I
>was actually shocked when I casually peeked out of my express and
>encountered this train!
>
>Is this the IR inter-city model? They normally employed such stunts for
>DMU's with a WDM2 in the middle and either end train control. But
>electrics?? Why can't they simply use EMU locals?? If 150 odd kms. (the
>Chennai Tirupati) is long, then CR DC EMUs on the Kasara route do 121
>kms! Why make a caricature out of the bland end of a WGSCNY Kapurthala
>coach?? I am positively REPULSED by the design adopted for end cabs of
>push-pull style units. Ugh!! Give us a BREAK!!!
>
>Sundar
>
>______________________________________________________
>Get Your Private, Free Email at <A HREF="http://www.hotmail.com">http://www.hotmail.com</A>
>
>
From: Sankar <shankie@emirates.email
Subject: Re: The 2627 Karnataka Express
Date: 20 Feb 1998 18:57:00 -0500
Ref. the last line in your message:"its unfortunate that DLW will switch to
EMD diesels in future".
Any further details?
Best regards.
Shankar
At 02:46 PM 2/19/98 -0600, you wrote:
>Sundar,
>
>>Its a heavenly sight to watch the diesels pull up
>>and hum up a rhythm on a sharp curve from the running train!! There is
>>no alternative to these Alco beauties that DLW makes!
>
>There is no better sight on IR than watching a pair of WDM2s haul a full
>rake. Actually, the WDM2s sound the best standing still - giving a new
>meaning to the term ticking over. New diesels just don't have the
>same charm. It is a real pity that only a few such trains remain.
>Another such sight (when Brindavan was double headed) was the sharp right
>hander past Jolarpet (towards BLR).
>
>Its unfortunate that DLW will switch to EMD Diesels in the future.
>
>-Sridhar
>
>****************************************************************
>Graduate School of Business Sridhar Shankar
>University of Chicago 5345 S.Harper Apt. 205
>Chicago, IL 60637 Chicago, IL 60615
>USA (773) 752 1131
>*****************************************************************
>
>
>
From: sank <sank@telco.email
Subject: [Fwd: Superfast trains
Date: 20 Feb 1998 23:11:00 -0500
--
Jayant S*ID Studio*TTIL*TELCO
Pimpri*Pune 411 018*INDIA*tel:91-212-774261 exn 2534
Email me at "sank@telco.email. Do NOT use your "reply" button !
From: S. Kumar <s.kumar@qm.email
Subject: Chennai-Tiruchi
Date: 20 Feb 1998 15:04:00 -0500
Sundar writes:
> All this is being done because the Madurai BG station and the
> Mayiladuturai chord conversion is done and ready. All the remaining
> trains will be diverted via Villupuram and Mayiladuturai through the
> chord. The new BG plates will now come on at the
> Villupuram-Trichy-Madurai link.
I am a bit confused. I thought that the
Villupuram-Vriddhachalam-Ariyalur-Tiruchi chord section was being converted to
BG. Mayiladuturai is on the Villupuram-Chidambaram-Thanjavur-Tiruchi
main line, not on the chord line. I know that there is a parallel BG line between Tiruchi
and Thanjavur (as part of the Tiruchi-Nagore conversion), but has
Thanjavur-Mayiladuturai been converted to BG too?
>
> After this is through, in about two months time, the remaining trains
> would also be suspended for the most important link - the
> Chennai-Chengalpattu-Villupuram trunk corridor.
>
> To enable Chennai-Madurai Commutation, SR meanwhile has started three
> new trains from Central to Madurai and Mayiladuturai.
>
> 6737/6738 Chennai Madurai Express, via ML
> 6711/6712 Madurai Express (through Jolarpettai, Erode, Karur, Trichy)
> 6801/6802 Mayiladuturai Express
>
I thought that the BG trains would go
Chennai-Villupuram-Vriddhachalam-Tiruchi-Karur-Dindigul-Madurai
pending conversion of Tiruchi-Manapparai-Dindigul later this year.
Kumar
From: Sankar <shankie@emirates.email
Subject: Re: Ugh!! Give us a break!
Date: 21 Feb 1998 05:06:00 -0500
I too have seen pictures of those horrendous looking WGSCNY end-cabs,with
rectangular makeshift windshields cut into the car ends.Awful. I even sent a
reply to that ,saying we have to learnto accept it,as the same end cabs are
shared by d.m.us, m.e.m.us etc.But coming to think of it, it ain't all that bad.
Fortunately,the WGSCNY cabs are soon to become things of the past.
The new d.m.u, m.e.m.us and even that Tirupati Express you talk about all have a
new type of end cab. Its got a semi streamlined end, recessed headlight,and
large (ratherbig by IR standards actually) windshields.Destination panels
are two foot rule
(ruler/scale) shaped windows, one above each windshield.
The Tirupati express certainly has this new semi-streamlined end cab. I'm
not sure
about the Diva-Roha d.m.u.s.The new tw0-car d.m.u.s have (two such cars coupled
back to back) have an unusual royal blue/scarlet red livery. D.m.u. (I mean
the new
type, with semi streamlined cabs) livery has changed from scarlet red/silver
(the very
first units) to mundane brown/cream to now royal blue/scarlet.
D.m.u.s were first put on line on the NR near Jalandhar. (Jullundur).
Incidentally, I read in the Indian Express in the month of November that the IR
standard livery is to be changed from the dull & mundane maroon to aircraft
blue/white
(two tone).It will be a welcome change, but I wonder how they will maintain the
white, especially on the slower trains and those passing through dusty
regions.(which
is the entire country,actually)!
Best regards.
Shankar.
At 09:51 PM 2/19/98 PST, you wrote:
>Hi Jayant..
>
>>I echo that "Ugh" !! If a WGSCNY type coach is on the end, though,
>>how is the driver keeping a lookout ? As far as I know, only
>>inspection stock on IR has windows at a coach-end.
>>Otherwise, I guess IR is still thinking of the British pattern for
>>intermediate-distance trains: the "push-pull" method as opposed to MU
>>working..............
>
>The coaches of a push-pull train at each end has its toilets removed to
>create a makeshift cab for the driver/motorman. Rectangular windows are
>drilled into the end to give visibility to the driver. The controls and
>gear in the cab are coupled through wires running through the length of
>the train, to the motive engine, either in the middle (DMU) or at the
>back(Saptagiri). A horrid curve resembling the Indian economy comes from
>both sides to symmetrically meet at the center on the front of the
>coach. I'll be posting some pics. You gotta see it to believe IR design.
>What are the creative capablities of RDSO??
>
>I don't know!!
>
>Push pull trains for short distances on electrified routes are
>redundant, when you have the EMU.
>
>Sundar Krishnamurthy
>
>______________________________________________________
>Get Your Private, Free Email at <A HREF="http://www.hotmail.com">http://www.hotmail.com</A>
>
>