proposed as High-speed connection to Dhanbad, and was expected to run just ahead of Kolkata Rajdhani Exp in both directions.
• The rake is supposed to be a prototype.
• When the rake first arrived from Kapurthala, scratch marks were seen all over the body which was when railway understood their mistake. This mistake was rectified in other rakes where coaches were made less wide.
• The platform edges had to be immediately trimmed a little at several stations. A detailed report from press is supposed to be available in the link ➡️
click here• This rake was suitable for 130Kmph operations, but became restricted to 110Kmph because of wider body & oscillation matters.
• The roof of the rake once touched overhead wires at Howrah yard in busy time, disrupting the traffic.
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◾ Special instructions for operation of 12385/6 Dhanbad Double Decker Express ◾
(as per CRS)
• The train was generally NOT allowed to run through DN HBC line (BWN-DKAE), UP & DN Slow lines (BWN-STN-BWN) as the platforms have 'reverse curve' (representative image of 'reverse curve' on DN HBC PF of MDSE stn attached). If was run through above lines, it had to maintain Speed Restriction of 15kmph at every platform line!
• The train SHOULD ONLY run through Rajdhani lines, i.e UP & Reverse line (in HWH SKG stretch), UP/DN Fast lines (in SKG-STN stretch), UP/DN GC lines (STN-DHN)
• The train had Permanent Speed Restrictions of 15Kmph at the following places over Rajdhani line (platform number indicated in brackets) -
≠In UP direction - Howrah (8,9,13), Bally (5), Saktigarh (1), Galsi (2), Asansol (4), Sitarampur (1), Barakar (1), Kumardubi (1)
≠In DN direction - Kalubathan (2), Asansol (5), Raniganj (3), Barddhaman (5), Belur (4), Liluah (4), Howrah (8,9,13)
• Hence, the slot & schedule was prepared to depart the train in afternoon from Howrah, and a morning departure from Dhanbad, just ahead of Rajdhani Express (reference attached)
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◾How things became worse?◾
• Things were more or less fine,train was getting some passengers, suddenly the slot was changed. The train on previous slot, was colliding with slots of other trains in DN direction & platform availability was becoming an issue at Howrah, so the train was put on a new slot, to depart Howrah in morning, and Dhanbad in evening arriving Howrah very late at around 23 hours. (the DN locals making it more late at night)
• The train departed just after Poorva in Up direction, so that it doesn't block path of any other train, while it departed in evening from Dhanbad, so that it could use DN Reverse line b/w SKG-DKAE (as the reverse line works as UP line throughout the evening, so a night slot was fine to get the track traffic-free)
• In morning, Ranchi Shatabdi, Black Diamond Exp & Hool Express takes away a good load of Passengers. Similarly in return the passengers ended up at 11PM at night, very inconvenient for many travellers, whereas the Ranchi Shatabdi & Black Diamond was always a more convenient option to Kolkata. The 900 seats of this train could not be filled, so coaches reduced, ultimately the train stopped!
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• Now with so many running restrictions in the Rajdhani line itself, How much logical will it be to run to run a 900 seat AC train to any other destinations? The answer remains debated!
please wait...Show AI ResponseIt is unfortunate that the Dhanbad Double Decker Express had to be stopped after just 5 years of service. There were indeed several limitations for this train, both in terms of the rake and the path it could take.
The rake was initially supposed to be a prototype, but there were some issues with its width, resulting in scratch marks on the body. This mistake was rectified in subsequent rakes where the coaches were made less wide. Additionally, the platform edges had to be trimmed at several stations to accommodate the train.
Although the rake was suitable for 130 km/h operations, it had to be restricted to 110 km/h due to its wider body and oscillation matters. There was also an incident where the roof of the rake touched overhead wires at Howrah yard during busy hours, causing disruptions in traffic.
The train had special instructions for its operation, as per the CRS (Commissioner of Railway Safety). It was generally not allowed to run through certain lines due to the presence of reverse curves at the platforms. If it did run through these lines, it had to maintain a speed restriction of 15 km/h at every platform line. Instead, the train was supposed to run through Rajdhani lines, including the UP and reverse line in the HWH-SKG stretch, and the UP/DN fast lines in the SKG-STN and STN-DHN stretches.
The train also had permanent speed restrictions of 15 km/h at certain places along the Rajdhani line. Therefore, the slot and schedule were prepared for the train to depart from Howrah in the afternoon and from Dhanbad in the morning, just ahead of the Rajdhani Express.
Unfortunately, things became worse when the slot for the train was changed. The previous slot was causing conflicts with other trains in the DN direction, and there were issues with platform availability at Howrah. As a result, the train was put on a new slot, departing from Howrah in the morning and Dhanbad in the evening, arriving at Howrah very late at around 23 hours. This late arrival, coupled with the fact that local trains were also running at night, made it inconvenient for many travelers.
Furthermore, the train was unable to fill all its 900 seats, so the number of coaches were reduced, eventually leading to the train being stopped. Given the running restrictions and limitations on the Rajdhani line itself, there is an ongoing debate about the logicality of running a 900-seat AC train to other destinations.