A ride on the self-propelled engine-less Vande Bharat Express or Train 18, will cost you more than the fares of Shatabdi Express, running on the same routes. Vande Bharat Express, which will offer aircraft-like comfort, will cost Rs 1,850 for air conditioned chair car seat and the executive class fare will be Rs 3,520 for a Delhi to Varanasi trip, including catering service charges, Indian Railways officials told PTI on Monday.
On its return journey, the chair car fare will be Rs 1,795 and the executive car ticket will cost Rs 3,470, the agency quoted officials as saying.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi will flag off Vande Bharat Express on February 15 from the New Delhi Railway station.
Train 18 is a 16-coach all air-conditioned premier express, which boasts executive and non-executive coaches. Its chair car fares are 1.5 times higher than that of Shatabdi trains running the same distance, while the executive class fares are 1.4 times of first class air conditioned seating in the premium train, the agency reported.
The train will have differently priced meals for chair car and executive class, sources said. The executive-class passengers will be charged Rs 399 for morning tea, breakfast and lunch for trip between New Delhi to Varanasi, while the chair car travellers will have to pay Rs 344 for the same.
Also Read: Train 18: PM Modi to flag off Vande Bharat Express on February 15 from New Delhi
Meanwhile, passengers travelling from New Delhi to Kanpur and Prayagraj will have to pay Rs 155 and Rs 122 for executive class and chair car, respectively.
From Varanasi to New Delhi, the travellers will be charged Rs 349 and Rs 288 in the executive class and chair, respectively, it added.
Train 18, which was recently named Vande Bharat Express by Railway Minister Piyush Goyal, has been manufactured by the Integral Coach Factory, Chennai.
Also Read: Train 18: Here's how much it will cost you to travel on India's fastest train
The train, which is slated to replace the Shatabdi Express from next year, became India's fastest train when it hit speeds of over 180 kmph during its trial run on a section of the Delhi-Mumbai Rajdhani route.
(With inputs from PTI)
Edited by Chitranjan Kumar