Vande Bharat Sleeper Train clocks maximum speed of 180 km/h in successful trial runs

The Vande Bharat sleeper train, designed for long-distance travel, achieved a peak speed of 180 km per hour during multiple trials conducted over the last three days, the railways ministry said on Friday. The trials will continue until the end of January before the train is launched for passengers nationwide.

Union Railway Minister Ashwini Vaishnaw shared a video of a successful trial run on the social media platform X. The video, demonstrating the train's stability, showed a nearly full glass of water on a flat surface as the train clocked a peak speed of 180 km per hour.

Vande Bharat sleeper train touched the peak speed in its loaded condition during a 30-km long run on Thursday between Kota and Laban in Bundi district of Rajasthan. On January 1, it recorded a similar top speed over a 40 km stretch between Rohal Khurd and Kota. The sleeper train also achieved speeds of 170 km/h and 160 km/h on the Kota-Nagda and Rohal Khurd-Chau Mahla sections, respectively.

Once the trials are completed, the train will undergo evaluation by the Railway Safety Commissioner. Only after receiving certification will the Vande Bharat sleeper trains be inducted into regular service.

"The real challenge for Railways was to add berths & test the trains for full passenger & luggage load conditions in order to convert them into Vande Bharat sleeper coaches while achieving the peak speed of 180 km/ hour," the railways ministry said in a release.

The Vande Bharat sleeper trains are designed to offer world-class travel experiences with features such as automatic doors, ultra-comfortable berths, onboard WiFi, and an aircraft-like design. Routes like Kashmir to Kanyakumari, Delhi to Mumbai, and Howrah to Chennai are expected to benefit from faster travel times.

Currently, the average speed for long-distance travel, such as Mumbai-Delhi, is 90 km/h, with the Tejas Rajdhani Express—India’s fastest Rajdhani service—having a maximum permissible speed of 140 km/h.

In a recent statement in the Lok Sabha, Railway Minister Ashwini Vaishnaw revealed that 10 Vande Bharat sleeper trains were under production.

He said contracts for the manufacturing of 200 sleeper rakes have been awarded to technology partners, with their rollout dependent on the successful completion of trials.