Railways contemplating fare reduction for short-distance Vande Bharat routes

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Vande Bharat trains that have been experiencing low occupancy. Railway officials have stated that this fare reduction is being implemented to make the train fares more affordable and accessible to the general public, as reported by The Hindustan Times. “Fares of Vande Bharat trains on the Indore-Bhopal, Bhopal-Jabalpur, Nagpur-Bilaspur routes and a few more are being reviewed and may be reduced for attracting more travellers," an official close to the development told HT.

“The Indore- Bhopal Vande Bharat, which has a travel time of around three hours, recorded just 29% occupancy in June and its return route recorded around 21% occupancy," the official added. Likewise, the railway official mentioned that the Nagpur-Bilaspur Vande Bharat Express, which has an approximate travel time of 5 hours and 30 minutes, has been witnessing an average occupancy of 55%. Similarly, the Bhopal-Jabalpur Vande Bharat Express, with a journey duration of 4.5 hours, has recorded an occupancy of 32%.

In light of these observations, there are considerations to lower the fares for these train routes as well, the report further noted. At present, the ticket prices for the Indore-Bhopal Vande Bharat train are ₹950 for an AC Chair car and ₹1,525 for an Executive Chair Car. Similarly, the Nagpur-Bilaspur Vande Bharat Express charges ₹2,045 for the Executive class and ₹1,075 for the Chair Car.

For the Bhopal to Jabalpur route, the fare is ₹1,055 for an AC Chair car and ₹1,880 for an Executive Chair Car. Shri Prakash, former Member (Traffic) at railway board told HT, “The railways should assess the demand of a route before commencing it. By not studying their clientele, they will not be able to increase their occupancy, as seen in the shorter Vande