Trial Run Of Odisha's Second Vande Bharat Express Conducted: Route, Timing, And Halts

Indian Railways successfully conducted the trial run of the Puri-Rourkela Vande Bharat Express train, which will be the second semi-high-speed train in the state of Odisha.

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Country’s fastest train - Vande Bharat Express, is ready to operate on another route in Odisha. Trial run for the second route of the semi-high-speed train in the state of Odisha was successfully conducted today. The trial was conducted in between Puri and Talcher Road railway stations. The train began from Puri railway station at roughly 9:30 AM in the morning and reached Talcher Road railway station at around 12:30 PM. The second  Vande Bharat Express of Odisha will run in between Puri and Rourkela. Prime Minister Narendra Modi had, in May, virtually flagged off Odisha's first Vande Bharat Express from Puri to Howrah.

Puri-Rourkela Vande Bharat Express: Route & Timing

The Puri-Rourkela Vande Bharat Express will operate six days a week, except for Saturday. The semi-high-speed train will take halts at Bhubaneshwar, Cuttack, Khurda Road, Dhenkanal, Kerejanga, Angul, Jharsuguda, and Sambalpur City. It will cover a total distance of 505 kilometres in 7 hours and 30 minutes. As for the timing, the train will depart from Puri at 5 AM to reach Rourkela by 12:45 PM. From Rourkela, it will start at around 2:10 PM to reach Puri by 9:40 PM.

Tentative Upcoming Vande Bharat Express Routes

Route 1: Indore - Jaipur Vande Bharat Express

Route 2: Jaipur-Udaipur Vande Bharat Express

Route 3: Puri - Rourkela Vande Bharat Express

Route 4: Patna-Howrah Vande Bharat Express

Route 5: Jaipur-Chandigarh Vande Bharat Express

These five routes of the Vande Bharat Express have already been assigned, while three routes have been assigned to the Southern Railways, however the names are yet to be finalised. It's not yet clear where the last Vande Bharat Express will be deployed. 

Vande Bharat Express Routes

As of date, 25 Vande Bharat Express trains are running across India, covering 50 routes, 25 each up and down. Four of these are in the Northern Zone, 3 in Southern and Central Zones, 2 in Western, West Central and North Western Railway Zones and 1 in South East Central, Eastern, East Coast, South Central, South Eastern, Northeast Frontier, East Central, South Western and North Eastern Railway.