Prime Minister Narendra Modi flagged off the new Yesvantpur-Mangaluru-Madgaon Vande Bharat Express on Friday, November 13. It will lead to faster rail connectivity between Bengaluru, Goa and coastal Karnataka. The Vande Bharat will link Bengaluru directly with Madgaon in Goa.
The chair car train makes it easier for travellers to plan a trip to Karnataka's coastal belt or to Goa's famous beaches. This will be the longest-running Vande Bharat chair car service in India, with an end-to-end journey time of over 13 hours.
Bengaluru-Madgaon Vande Bharat Route
The train will pass through several important destinations in Karnataka, such as Hassan, Mangaluru and Udupi. It will operate between Madgaon and Bengaluru's Yesvantpur station with 12 intermediate stops: Shravanabelagola, Hassan, Sakleshpur, Subrahmanya Road, Kabaka Puttur, Mangaluru Junction, Udupi, Kundapura, Mookambika Road Byndoor, Murdeshwar, Gokarna Road and Karwar.
Bengaluru-Madgaon Vande Bharat Timings
The Vande Bharat to Madgaon (train no. 26655) departs Yesvantpur at 7:35 am and arrives at Madgaon at 8:55 pm. The service will operate daily except Wednesdays.
The return train (train no. 26656) will depart Madgaon at 8:20 am and reach Yesvantpur at 9:15 pm. The train will run daily except on Thursdays.
While the train improves direct connectivity between Bengaluru and Goa, it will be the slowest Vande Bharat service in the country because of track constraints on the route. The train will have an average speed of about 54 km/h due to the railway track conditions on the route.
A large section of the railway line between Mangaluru Junction and Madgaon is a single track, where the maximum speed is set at 30 kmph. Trains coming from opposite directions have to wait for each other to pass at certain points before they can continue.
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Bengaluru-Madgaon Vande Bharat Fare
The Bengaluru-Madgaon Vande Bharat Express offers two seating options: AC Chair Car and Executive AC. The fare for an AC Chair Car journey between Yesvantpur and Madgaon is Rs 2,200, and the Executive Chair Car costs Rs 3,865.
Using the new Vande Bharat service, travellers will be able to plan an easy itinerary from Bengaluru to the coast of Karnataka or Goa. It will boost tourism in the region, making it easier to visit Gokarna's beaches or Udupi's temples from Bengaluru. One of the biggest attractions of the route will be the scenic views of the Western Ghats.
