The ambitious 435-kilometer Chennai-Bengaluru-Mysuru high-speed rail (HSR) project will soon link the automobile manufacturing hub Chennai, the IT and start-up hub Bengaluru, and Karnataka’s cultural capital, Mysuru.
The Chennai-Bengaluru-Mysuru corridor is densely populated, with corporations, tech parks, manufacturing facilities, and townships spread along its length. The high-speed rail project is additionally anticipated to shorten the travel time between Mysuru and the two southern state capitals.
The proposed route, as per a Moneycontrol report, for the Chennai-Bengaluru-Mysuru HSR has nine stations: Chennai, Poonamallee, Arakkonam (Tamil Nadu), Chittoor (Andhra Pradesh), Bangarapet (Karnataka), Bengaluru, Channapatna, Mandya, and Mysuru.
The National High-Speed Rail Corporation (NHSRCL) has already awarded contracts for the creation of General Alignment Drawings, surveying, identifying overhead, overground, and underground utilities, and determining power sourcing choices for substations.
According to reports, a land survey along the corridor is currently ongoing, and the NHSRCL has also met with impacted landowners. The Detailed Project Report (DPR) will outline the exact alignment, station locations, expected ridership, and fare structure.
Ground control points are being placed along the alignment based on GPS & LiDAR surveys. pic.twitter.com/m0flg21wsI
— Our Chittoor (@manachittooru) January 14, 2024
The HSR track is being proposed along the Bengaluru-Chennai expressway between Hoskote near Bengaluru, Karnataka, and Sriperumbudur near Chennai. It is also likely to be closer to the second airport in Chennai at Parandur, which is barely 3 km away from the new Bengaluru-Chennai road.
The Vande Bharat Express currently takes 6 hours and 30 minutes to travel from Mysuru to Chennai via Bengaluru. However, the bullet train can cover the distance in 2 hours and 25 minutes. Bullet trains will move at a maximum speed of 350 kmph, and the average speed is estimated to be 250 kmph, with each train having a capacity of 750 people.
The HSR project is intended to help thousands of people, mainly persons in business, techies, and others who travel between Mysuru, Bengaluru, and Chennai.
Mohandas Pai, former CFO of Infosys and Chairman of Aarin Capital informed Moneycontrol, “The Chennai-Bengaluru-Mysuru high-speed train project will be a big boost to business travel. I estimate that business agreements and visits will grow by 5X. Once the travel time between Chennai and Bengaluru/Mysuru is shortened with HSR, we will observe more business trips.”
Rail experts suggested the HSR may attract air travelers to trains. K N Krishna Prasad, railway activist and member of the NGO Karnataka Railway Vedike said, “The distance between Mysuru and Chennai is now 490 kms on the existing railway line, while the proposed alignment via Bangarapet is roughly 435 km, which will minimize travel time. The HSR ticket fee is projected to be higher than the first-class AC rate on Indian Railways”.
He stated that air customers flying on the Chennai-Bengaluru-Mysuru sector may consider moving, since they won’t need to be early for airport check-ins and also avoid the trek to the Bengaluru airport, which is located roughly 40 km from the Central Business District.”
Citing the example of the Bengaluru-Mysuru expressway, Pai remarked, “It has positively impacted tourism in Mysuru and nearby districts, and improved hotel occupancy. Imagine an employee being able to stay in Mysuru, work in Bengaluru, and return to Mysuru after work. The Bengaluru-Chennai region has a lot of industries and vast potential, so the project should be expedited.”
In 2016, a team of German engineers did a feasibility assessment for the Chennai-Bengaluru-Mysuru corridor. According to the final feasibility analysis filed to the railroads in 2018, which was wholly sponsored by the German government, the anticipated cost of the 435-km HSR network will be roughly $16 billion (about Rs 1 lakh crore).
According to the report, of the 435 Km, 84 percent of the track will be elevated, 11 percent underground, and the remaining five percent will be at ground level. NHSRCL is likely to develop HSR routes based on Japan’s E5 Shinkansen bullet train technology with JICA (Japan International Cooperation Agency) funding.
Separately, in June 2015, China Railway Eryuan Engineering Group filed an interim report for a semi-high-speed rail project that aimed to reinforce the rails to allow trains to travel at 160 kmph on the Mysuru-Bengaluru-Chennai route. According to the Chinese company, the journey time between Chennai and Mysuru via Bengaluru could be cut to 4 hours and 45 minutes with an investment of Rs 4,350 crore to adapt the current lines to run trains at 160 kmph. However, given the tensions between New Delhi and Beijing as a result of Covid-19 and border issues, India is unlikely to work with Chinese companies.
In addition, the railways recently solicited proposals for a final location survey (FLS) for a new semi-high-speed broad gauge line connecting Chennai and Bengaluru. The proposed line’s design speed is 220 kmph, with an operational speed of 200 kmph. The Rail Ministry has earmarked Rs 8.3 crore for the survey, which would cover a 350-kilometer route between Byappanahalli in Bengaluru and Chennai Central.
Following the introduction of the Vande Bharat Express, both the South Western Railway (KSR Bengaluru City-Jolarpettai portion) and the Southern Railway (Jolarpettai-Chennai segment) worked to raise the maximum allowable speed from 110 kmph to 130 kmph. When the rails are expanded to 130-160 kmph, trains might travel at an average speed of 110-120 kmph.
South Western Railway conducted a speed trial on the KSR Bengaluru City-Jolarpettai section last year in order to enhance the maximum allowable speed from 110 kmph to 130 kmph. Similarly, the maximum allowable speed on the Chennai-Jolarpettai line has been increased to 130 kmph.
