http://www.dnaindia.com/report.asp?NewsID=1068320
New-look coaches on rail radar

Vineeta Pandey
Friday, December 08, 2006  23:59 IST

NEW DELHI: Forget the long haul, tortuous and uneasy train journeys, as the Railways is planning to go high-tech with newly designed, state-of-the-art coaches in its passenger trains.
 
In a bid to compete with the low-cost airlines, Railways is trying to woo passengers by showcasing an attractive train journey in coaches that are larger in size, have high ceilings and a capacity to accommodate about 80 passengers at a given point of time as against the present capacity of 64.
 
According to Railways, the new-look, better-designed air-conditioned coaches will be equipped with passenger amenity items like snack bars, bottle holders, mirrors, magazine holders, improved illumination through Compact Fluorescent Light (CFL) and mobile charging sockets with will aesthetically pleasing interiors.
 
The coaches will be decorated at Kapurthala and Chennai coach factories as per Linke Hoffman Busch (LBH) design, under the technology transfer from European technology giant, Alstom.
 
These new rakes are a step ahead of what Railways had launched recently in its Shatabdis and Rajdhanis. The newly-launched AC 3-Tier coaches for Garib Rath Express trains have also been designed with a higher passenger carrying capacity of 75 persons.
 
Plans are also underway to revamp catering and other facilities on trains and stations with a view to making them more tourist-friendly. According to Railway officials, stations and trains are being provided with multi-cuisine food plazas, automatic vending machines, water vending machines, ATMs, bedroll and coach cleaning services.
 
The union Railways Ministry has also signed MoUs with the State Bank of India for installation of Automated Teller Machines (ATMs) at 681 stations, while the Punjab National Bank, Dena Bank, Bank of Baroda, Canara Bank, Indian Bank and Union Bank of India will set up ATMs at 711 stations.
 
The Railways is also going to start a Call Centre for its Integrated Train Enquiry System (ITES).
 
According to plans, a universal telephone number — 139 — will be provided without prefixing any Subscriber Trunk Dialing (STD) code. Both Interactive Voice Response System (IVRS) and manual enquiry will disseminate information on train running status, reservation status of passenger, availability of accommodation and other value added services.
 
On the fast track
 
The plan is to fight the low-cost airlines
 
The new coaches will be larger in size and accommodate 80 passengers
 
The coaches will be decorated at the Kapurthala and Chennai coach factories as per the Linke Hoffman Busch (LBH) design, under the technology transfer from European technology giant, Alstom
 
Stations and trains will be provided with multi-cuisine food plazas, automatic vending machines, water vending machines and ATMs