Double Decker Express

Double Decker Express are a series of trains started by Indian Railways for shorter routes in order to serve more people than a traditional chair car carriage.

The Howrah–Dhanbad Double Decker Express was the first of its type to be introduced.

Rake

Double Decker Express are composed of bi-level seating arrangements for passengers with seating capacity of 120 seats, divided into lower deck, upper deck and mezzanine seating area. The old Double Decker were non AC ICF coaches. In 2011, new fully-AC Stainless Steel LHB Double Decker were introduced in India. Stainless Steel LHB Coaches built at Kapurthala Coach Factory are utilized for AC Double Decker trains.

AC Double Decker Services

UDAY Express

In 2018, a new generation of Double Decker Express trains were introduced in Indian Railways named as UDAY Express - Utkrisht Double Decker Air Conditioned Yatri Express trains, designed by RDSO. The coaches of these trains have an anti-graffiti vinyl wrapped exterior and have been given a bright color scheme of yellow, orange and pink - somewhat similar to that of the Tejas Express. The UDAY express was envisioned as a premium train service for business travelers. According to Indian Railways, Uday Express will cater to the "busiest routes" and increase carrying capacity by 40%. These trains have airline styled seating with a capacity of 120 passengers per coach (50 for upper deck, 48 for lower deck and 22 on the ends) as compared to Shatabdis which can seat up to 78. These coaches are also equipped with WiFi infotainment system, have information screens just like Humsafar Express and have small dining area in coaches. Uday Express can run at a maximum speed of 110 km/h and an average speed of 62 km/h.

Services

The first service was launched on 10 June 2018 between Coimbatore Junction and Bangalore having halts at Krishnarajapuram, Kuppam, Salem Jn, Erode Jn, Tiruppur Jn and Coimbatore Jn. The second service was launched on 26 September 2019 between Visakhapatnam and Vijayawada with 7 stops en route, and was later extended till Guntur.

Defunct AC Double Decker Services

Defunct Non-AC Double Decker Services

See also

References

Uses material from the Wikipedia article Double Decker Express, released under the CC BY-SA 4.0 license.