India's first indigenously built engineless semi-high speed train arrived in Delhi at Safdarjung Railway Station Thursday. Capable of running at a speed of up to 160 kmph, Train 18 is being referred to as a successor to the 30-year-old Shatabdi Express. The fully air-conditioned semi-high speed train, which will cut travel time by 15 per cent as compared to the Shatabdi, has been manufactured under ‘Make in India’ initiative by the Integral Coach Factory (ICF) in Chennai at the cost of Rs 100 crore and completed in a record 18 months. The swanky features of the much-anticipated train include modern air-conditioned coaches, touch free automatic doors inside the passengers compartment and GPS-enabled passenger information system, showing train speed, location, time to reach destination etc. It will also feature onboard uninterrupted Wifi and infotainment system. The train is designed in such a way that passengers can have a look at the driver’s cabin and also has disabled-friendly toilets. The aircraft-like toilets are bio-vacuum for efficient flushing. Read | 10 interesting facts on Train 18 A mini pantry is instituted in each coach of Train 18 and will have state-of-the-art equipment for better heating of food and chilling of cold drinks and juices. A unique feature is also of the executive chair car seats which can be rotated 180 degrees to face fellow passengers and can be aligned in the direction of travel.
