India: The train was put into operation on the Ahmedabad–Bhuj line.
This modification is designed for regional and urban routes as opposed to its conventional counterpart but has been launched on a 360 km line. The acceleration and braking are said to be more rapid, but there are no exact figures in open sources, while traditional Vande Bharat’s acceleration rate is from 0.7 to 0.8 m/s2.
The EMU has less cars (12 against 16), a design speed of 130 km/h (limited to 110 km/h on the route) and broader aisles between seats. One train can accommodate 1,150 seated and 2,058 standing passengers. The vehicle also features an Indian Automatic Train Protection system, the Kavach.
The Vande Metro is a continuation of indigenously developed trains. The train development work was completed in the spring of 2023, and this May saw the first train to be manufactured at the national operator’s, Indian Railways, plant in Kapurthala.
