Bengaluru-Mumbai Vande Bharat Sleeper Express Flagged Off, Regular Services From November 2

Railway Minister Ashwini Vaishnaw on Sunday flagged off the inaugural run of the Vande Bharat Sleeper Express connecting Bengaluru and Mumbai, marking a significant addition to overnight rail connectivity between the two major metropolitan cities.

The inaugural special train, comprising a 16-coach Vande Bharat Sleeper rake, departed from Sir M Visvesvaraya Terminal (SMVT) in Bengaluru and is scheduled to reach Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj Terminus (CSMT) in Mumbai at 6.15 am on Monday, railway officials said.

Union Ministers Pralhad Joshi and H D Kumaraswamy, Ministers of State V Somanna and Shobha Karandlaje, and MPs Tejasvi Surya, P C Mohan and C N Manjunath were among those present at the flag-off ceremony.

According to South Western Railway, regular services will commence on November 2 in the Mumbai-Bengaluru direction and November 3 in the return direction.

Train No. 27652, operating from Bengaluru to Mumbai, will depart SMVT Bengaluru at 7.45 pm and arrive at CSMT Mumbai at 11.55 am the following day. The service will run six days a week, except Mondays.

In the opposite direction, Train No. 27651 will leave CSMT Mumbai at 8.10 pm and reach SMVT Bengaluru at noon the next day. It will operate six days a week, except Tuesdays.

The train's scheduled stoppages include Anantapur, Guntakal, Raichur, Yadgir, Kalaburagi, Solapur, Pune and Kalyan. The inaugural special service also stopped at Hindupur, Dharmavaram and Lonavala.

The 16-coach rake comprises eight motor cars and four trailer cars.

South Western Railway said the new service is expected to provide passengers with a comfortable overnight travel option while strengthening connectivity between Karnataka and Maharashtra.