Travel ‘Super AC’ on Western Railway soon

Come October 2011, outstation railway commuters on Western Railway will have the option of travelling in a new upgraded class called Super AC, which will have facilities like regulated AC temperature, LED lights, charging points for laptops and mobiles and sub-pantries with water coolers and ovens.

The railways are yet to finalise the placement of and fare structure for the special coaches.

“The new coaches will be an upgraded version of the existing first and second AC coaches and would be retrofitted with a large number of added amenities,” a senior official working on the project said.

The layout, officials promise, will have optimal utilisation of the space for seats and berths in the transverse directions. “If space and costs permit, there are also plans to provide state-of-the-art drop-down screens with pre-recorded audio-visual movies/clips,” said a senior railway manager.

The coaches are being manufactured by the Rail Coach Factory for Western Railway and should be ready for regular service by October 2011. The 25 specially designed coaches will seat 44 passengers with interior aesthetics and comfort levels comparable to world standards.

“The railways and airlines have always fought to attract passengers. For example, on the Mumbai-Delhi sector, the railways had slashed prices of Rajdhani trains as low cost airlines had lowered their rates. The airlines then further reduced prices, leading to an aggressive battle a few years ago,” a senior railway manager said.