Thiruvananthapuram – Mangaluru Vande Bharat to get 530 additional seats; service begins in a week

Thiruvananthapuram: The Railway Board has approved a 16-coach train for the Thiruvananthapuram—Mangaluru Vande Bharat service. Currently, the service via Alappuzha is operated using a train with only eight coaches. The 16-coach train withdrawn from the Nagercoil—Chennai route has been allotted to the Palakkad division, as the route will get a brand new 20-coach train this week.

Although there is a high demand for the Thiruvananthapuram – Mangaluru Vande Bharat, tickets would quickly sell out as the train has only eight coaches. Now, the service would get 530 additional seats. The Mangaluru – Thiruvananthapuram Vande Bharat train departs at 6.25 am and reaches Thiruvananthapuram by 3.05 pm.

Meanwhile, the return service begins at 4.05 am and reaches Mangaluru by 12.40 pm. Recently, the number of coaches of the Thiruvananthapuram – Kasargod Vande Bharat Express via Kottayam has increased to 20. The passengers have been demanding to allot 20 coaches for the Mangaluru service too. If the 16-coach service is profitable, then four more coaches would be allowed on the Mangaluru route. The Thiruvananthapuram – Mangaluru Vande Bharat service with 16 coaches will begin within a week.