AC trains too tall for Western Railway also

The Western Railway (WR) which was asked to check the height of the air-conditioned local train rake on its line after it was found to be too high on the Central Railway (CR) have also concluded that the rake was too tall for it.

The WR was asked to conduct the check as officials felt unlike the CR, the rail-over-bridges and the foot-over-bridges on the WR were high enough to allow the train to pass under them without any safety norms being violated.

The only air-conditioned train that was delivered to Mumbai in April this year has become a bane for officials after innumerable glitches in its software and the air-conditioning unit. The subject of worry now is its height.

“The height of the train from its wheels to its roof should be 4.265 metres but right now it is 4.365 and they are currently trying to get the height to 4.290 metres but it still won’t be accepted by the railway board because it would still exceed the safety standard,” said an official on the condition of anonymity.

The WR officials are currently in discussion with the CR to shave off a few inches from the wheels of the train and bring the height of the rake within the safety limit. “There is a good chance the WR may be able to operate the train. We will conduct a trial again after shaving off the few inches, unless we get an innovative idea, the train is unlikely to be run.”

Earlier the air-conditioned unit of the train that had been mounted on the roof of the rake too was a problem as the railways has been trying to remove the units and mount attach them to the side.