Bengaluru-Mumbai Sleeper Train Set to Cut Hours Off Trips

At Sir M. Visvesvaraya Terminal in Bengaluru, Railway Minister Ashwini Vaishnaw waved to the crowd as a 16-coach sleeper train left for Mumbai. The new service is set to cover the trip in about 16 hours, giving passengers an overnight rail option between two of India’s biggest cities. Regular service starts in each direction on different dates. ^4,6

The 16-hour trip will follow a set timetable: the Bengaluru train leaves at 7:45 pm and reaches Mumbai at 11:55 am the next day. The return train leaves Mumbai at 8:10 pm and arrives in Bengaluru at noon. Both run six days a week. The route stops at Anantapur, Guntakal, Raichur, Yadgir, Kalaburagi, Solapur, Pune and Kalyan. ^4,6

Those eight stops bring the service to towns and cities across Karnataka, Andhra Pradesh and Maharashtra, while Pune and Kalyan link it to the Mumbai region. The train has sleeper berths, unlike the seated Vande Bharat trains many passengers already know. Its scheduled journey is about 16 hours, compared with roughly 23 hours and 35 minutes on the Udyan Express from Bengaluru to Mumbai, according to a comparison published by ET. That saves overnight travellers a meaningful amount of time, though the train still takes far longer than a direct flight. ^5,8

The timetable sets the next step: trips from Mumbai to Bengaluru begin November 2, followed by trips from Bengaluru to Mumbai on November 3. Regular service will skip Mondays for Bengaluru-to-Mumbai trips and Tuesdays for the return. Passengers can choose First AC, Second AC or Third AC; reported fares are Rs 4,450, Rs 3,630 and Rs 2,810, respectively. ^4,14