Vista Dome coaches to descend on scenic ghats

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Over a year after making their debut in Mumbai, the glass-roofed Vista Dome coaches might descend on the scenic ghats of Khandala and Igatpuri next year. IRCTC has suggested two key routes, CSMT-Pune and CSMT-Manmad, for running these trains on Central Railway (CR).

The trains are expected to be up and running before March 31, 2019. On CR, the train currently runs on the Goa route, where it has been quite a hit, with tickets going at Rs 2,235 for the whole journey. The fare of the new trains will be comparable to that of the executive class coaches. Tourists would be able to take in the lush green mountain views in the comfort of their seat through the glass-domed roof and side windows.

A senior Central Railway official said, "Manufactured by Integral Coach Factory in Chennai, Tamil Nadu, the first such coach is running from Visakhapatnam to Araku valley hill station."

The new proposed sections these trains will run on have over 25 tunnels, and the train will pass through high mountain viaducts, on a breathtaking terrain. "All the seats in the Vista Dome coaches can be rotated and pushed back. The coaches also have automatic sliding compartment doors, LED lights, etc," said another senior CR official.

While no section has been identified on the Western Railway yet, other scenic sections identified all over the country include the lush green Shoranur-Nilambur, Thiruvananthapuram-Ernakulum in the south, Alipur Duar-Lumding in the north east, Gondia-Ballarshah in central India, Bangalore-Goa, and Jammu-Udhampur in the north.

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