At present, the Rajdhani Express is the fastest train that runs between New Delhi and Howrah
The Indian Railways officials are planning to shorten the time between New Delhi and Kolkata by at least two and a half hours. For doing so, they are planning to increase the speed of the trains to 160 kmph. According to the reports, under the project Mission Raftar, the Indian Railways are planning to shorten the travel time between busy destinations by reducing the speed of the train. The current travel route under speculation is 1,525 km long.
A Railway official said to Hindustan Times,” Passengers travelling along the New Delhi and Howrah route will be able to reach their destination at least two and a half hours to three hours earlier as the speed of the train will be increased from the current 85 kmph to maximum of 160 kmph. With the implementation of Mission Raftar, the Rajdhani Express running along this route will reach its destination in less than 15 hours.”
At present, the Rajdhani Express is the fastest train that runs between New Delhi and Howrah. The travel time is 17.05 hours and the route includes Gaya in Bihar. In July 2020, the highest speed for the route was increased to 130 kmph.
The speed of the train depends on several factors like sectional speed, train stoppages, speed of rolling stock, speed restrictions and a lot more. Through the latest technology used by countries like France, Germany, South Africa and China, the goal is attainable.
Before this, the plan was implemented on another train which runs between New Delhi and Mumbai and was 1,483km long. The railways are in expectation to reduce the travel time between Mumbai and Delhi by an hour once the work gets over. According to the officials, 35% of the work is done already.