The Grand Trunk Express
Encyclopedia
The Grand Trunk Express, (commonly called G.T. or G.T. Express)(Tamil:கிரேண்டு டிரங்க் எக்ஸ்பிரஸ்,Telugu:గ్ర్యాండ్ ట్రంక్ ఎక్స్ప్రస్,Hindi/Marathi:ग्रैंड ट्रंक एक्स्प्रेस), is one of the oldest and most famous trains in India
. When introduced in 1929, the train ran between Peshawar
(today in Pakistan) and Mangalore
, almost the length of the country and beyond. If fact, the GT was probably one of the longest running trains in the country at that time. The Peshawar to Mangalore run took about 104 hrs in all, later the end points were changed and to this day it provides a daily service between New Delhi
, the capital of India, and the capital of Tamil Nadu, Chennai
. It covers the distance of 2186 kilometres (1,358.3 mi) in exactly 35 hrs 35 mins., with 38 halts (inclusive of the terminals). The train is one of the longest train routes in India.
The train passes through the states of Tamil Nadu
, Andhra Pradesh
, Maharashtra
, Madhya Pradesh
, Rajasthan
, Uttar Pradesh
, Haryana
and Delhi
.
As per the numbering of the Indian Railways, the train has been assigned the numbers 12615/12616, with 12615 being assigned for the Chennai - New Delhi run and 12616 for the New Delhi - Chennai run.
The normal composition of the GT is 24 coaches (cars) of the following classes
("AC" indicates air conditioned coach):
Sometimes an extra III tier sleeper coach is added to bring the total up to 25 coaches.
The GT is hauled for the entire route by a single WAP-4 AC electric locomotive from the Erode shed.
The train's name - and the name of the route on which it runs, the arterial North-South route, which is doubled and fully electrified, the Grand Trunk route—derives from the famous Grand Trunk Road
.
The GT is no longer the fastest or most prestigious train on the route.
Presently there is also another train, the Tamil Nadu Express
, which operates the same route, but is a bit faster as it has only 10 stops.
and Chennai Central
with 34 intermediate stops, excluding the terminals. The Tamil Nadu Express
runs on the same route with only 9 intermediate stops. Technically speaking, the Chennai Rajdhani
Express between Hazrat Nizamuddin
and Chennai Central shares the honour of being the fastest train on this route, taking 28 hours and 10 minutes to do the run, currently with 7 intermediate stops (to be increased to 9 with Tuglakabad and Balharshah added at a later date), along with the Chennai Garib Rath Express, with 9 intermediate stops and exactly the same duration between New Delhi and Chennai. The Tamil Nadu Sampark Kranti Express between Hazrat Nizamuddin and Madurai Junction travels between Hazrat Nizamuddin and Chennai Egmore in 34 hours and 50 minutes, with only 4 intermediate stops (the 5th stop at Chennai Beach station to be added later). The TN Sampark Kranti Express further continues on to Madurai.
There's another train called Himsagar Express, runs between Jammu Tawi & Kanyakumari covering almost 3715 km in 70 hours with 70 intermediate stations.
India
India , officially the Republic of India , is a country in South Asia. It is the seventh-largest country by geographical area, the second-most populous country with over 1.2 billion people, and the most populous democracy in the world...
. When introduced in 1929, the train ran between Peshawar
Peshawar
Peshawar is the capital of Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa and the administrative center and central economic hub for the Federally Administered Tribal Areas of Pakistan....
(today in Pakistan) and Mangalore
Mangalore
Mangalore is the chief port city of the Indian state of Karnataka. It is located about west of the state capital, Bangalore. Mangalore lies between the Arabian Sea and the Western Ghat mountain ranges, and is the administrative headquarters of the Dakshina Kannada district in south western...
, almost the length of the country and beyond. If fact, the GT was probably one of the longest running trains in the country at that time. The Peshawar to Mangalore run took about 104 hrs in all, later the end points were changed and to this day it provides a daily service between New Delhi
New Delhi
New Delhi is the capital city of India. It serves as the centre of the Government of India and the Government of the National Capital Territory of Delhi. New Delhi is situated within the metropolis of Delhi. It is one of the nine districts of Delhi Union Territory. The total area of the city is...
, the capital of India, and the capital of Tamil Nadu, Chennai
Chennai
Chennai , formerly known as Madras or Madarasapatinam , is the capital city of the Indian state of Tamil Nadu, located on the Coromandel Coast off the Bay of Bengal. Chennai is the fourth most populous metropolitan area and the sixth most populous city in India...
. It covers the distance of 2186 kilometres (1,358.3 mi) in exactly 35 hrs 35 mins., with 38 halts (inclusive of the terminals). The train is one of the longest train routes in India.
The train passes through the states of Tamil Nadu
Tamil Nadu
Tamil Nadu is one of the 28 states of India. Its capital and largest city is Chennai. Tamil Nadu lies in the southernmost part of the Indian Peninsula and is bordered by the union territory of Pondicherry, and the states of Kerala, Karnataka, and Andhra Pradesh...
, Andhra Pradesh
Andhra Pradesh
Andhra Pradesh , is one of the 28 states of India, situated on the southeastern coast of India. It is India's fourth largest state by area and fifth largest by population. Its capital and largest city by population is Hyderabad.The total GDP of Andhra Pradesh is $100 billion and is ranked third...
, Maharashtra
Maharashtra
Maharashtra is a state located in India. It is the second most populous after Uttar Pradesh and third largest state by area in India...
, Madhya Pradesh
Madhya Pradesh
Madhya Pradesh , often called the Heart of India, is a state in central India. Its capital is Bhopal and Indore is the largest city....
, Rajasthan
Rajasthan
Rājasthān the land of Rajasthanis, , is the largest state of the Republic of India by area. It is located in the northwest of India. It encompasses most of the area of the large, inhospitable Great Indian Desert , which has an edge paralleling the Sutlej-Indus river valley along its border with...
, Uttar Pradesh
Uttar Pradesh
Uttar Pradesh abbreviation U.P. , is a state located in the northern part of India. With a population of over 200 million people, it is India's most populous state, as well as the world's most populous sub-national entity...
, Haryana
Haryana
Haryana is a state in India. Historically, it has been a part of the Kuru region in North India. The name Haryana is found mentioned in the 12th century AD by the apabhramsha writer Vibudh Shridhar . It is bordered by Punjab and Himachal Pradesh to the north, and by Rajasthan to the west and south...
and Delhi
Delhi
Delhi , officially National Capital Territory of Delhi , is the largest metropolis by area and the second-largest by population in India, next to Mumbai. It is the eighth largest metropolis in the world by population with 16,753,265 inhabitants in the Territory at the 2011 Census...
.
As per the numbering of the Indian Railways, the train has been assigned the numbers 12615/12616, with 12615 being assigned for the Chennai - New Delhi run and 12616 for the New Delhi - Chennai run.
The normal composition of the GT is 24 coaches (cars) of the following classes
Indian Railways - Travel Coach types and their seating / berths
Indian Railways run a number of different types of coaches, with different patterns of seating or berths, depending on the class of travel.-Designations of coaches in different classes:Some changes were recently made to the classes of travel:...
("AC" indicates air conditioned coach):
- 1 x AC I Class cum AC II tier
- 2 x AC II tier
- 3 x AC III tier
- 13 x III tier Sleeper
- 4 x General/Unreserved
- 1 x Pantry
Sometimes an extra III tier sleeper coach is added to bring the total up to 25 coaches.
The GT is hauled for the entire route by a single WAP-4 AC electric locomotive from the Erode shed.
The train's name - and the name of the route on which it runs, the arterial North-South route, which is doubled and fully electrified, the Grand Trunk route—derives from the famous Grand Trunk Road
Grand Trunk Road
The Grand Trunk Road also formerly known as Uttarapatha, Shah Rah-e-Azam or Sadak-e-Azam or Badshahi Sadak is one of South Asia's oldest and longest major roads...
.
The GT is no longer the fastest or most prestigious train on the route.
Presently there is also another train, the Tamil Nadu Express
Tamil Nadu Express
The Tamil Nadu Express or T.N. Express is a passenger train route of the Indian Railways. The train was first started on 7 August 1976 by then Prime Minister, Mrs. Indira Gandhi as a bi-weekly was the first State named train of the south...
, which operates the same route, but is a bit faster as it has only 10 stops.
Comparison with Other Trains
The GT, or Grand Trunk Express now runs between New Delhi railway stationNew Delhi Railway Station
The New Delhi Railway Station , station code NDLS, situated between Ajmeri Gate and Paharganj is the main railway station in Delhi. New Delhi railway station is the second busiest and one of the largest in India. It handles over 300 trains each day with 16 platforms and about 360,000 passengers...
and Chennai Central
Chennai Central
Chennai Central , erstwhile Madras Central, is the main railway terminus in the city of Chennai . It is the home of the Southern Railway and the most important rail hub in South India. The other major railway hub stations in the city are Chennai Egmore and Tambaram...
with 34 intermediate stops, excluding the terminals. The Tamil Nadu Express
Tamil Nadu Express
The Tamil Nadu Express or T.N. Express is a passenger train route of the Indian Railways. The train was first started on 7 August 1976 by then Prime Minister, Mrs. Indira Gandhi as a bi-weekly was the first State named train of the south...
runs on the same route with only 9 intermediate stops. Technically speaking, the Chennai Rajdhani
Chennai Rajdhani
The Chennai Rajdhani Express is an important train connecting Chennai to New Delhi. It was first introduced in 1993 and runs twice a week from Delhi and twice from Chennai. The Chennai Rajdhani is a fast alternative to the classic Grand Trunk Express and the modern superfast Tamil Nadu Express.The...
Express between Hazrat Nizamuddin
Nizamuddin Railway Station
Hazrat Nizamuddin Railway Station is one of the three main railway stations of Delhi, India. Hazrat Nizamuddin railway station connects all the major cities and is being developed to ease congestion on New Delhi Railway Station. Hazrat Nizamuddin Railway Station is served by Northern Railway....
and Chennai Central shares the honour of being the fastest train on this route, taking 28 hours and 10 minutes to do the run, currently with 7 intermediate stops (to be increased to 9 with Tuglakabad and Balharshah added at a later date), along with the Chennai Garib Rath Express, with 9 intermediate stops and exactly the same duration between New Delhi and Chennai. The Tamil Nadu Sampark Kranti Express between Hazrat Nizamuddin and Madurai Junction travels between Hazrat Nizamuddin and Chennai Egmore in 34 hours and 50 minutes, with only 4 intermediate stops (the 5th stop at Chennai Beach station to be added later). The TN Sampark Kranti Express further continues on to Madurai.
See also
- Famous trains
- Hussainsagar ExpressHussainsagar ExpressHussainsagar Express is a very popular train operated by South Central Railway between Hyderabad and Mumbai. It was started in late 1975 to connect the two cities. At that time this was the only train to Mumbai from the Deccan region of the country...
- Tamil Nadu ExpressTamil Nadu ExpressThe Tamil Nadu Express or T.N. Express is a passenger train route of the Indian Railways. The train was first started on 7 August 1976 by then Prime Minister, Mrs. Indira Gandhi as a bi-weekly was the first State named train of the south...
- Chennai RajdhaniChennai RajdhaniThe Chennai Rajdhani Express is an important train connecting Chennai to New Delhi. It was first introduced in 1993 and runs twice a week from Delhi and twice from Chennai. The Chennai Rajdhani is a fast alternative to the classic Grand Trunk Express and the modern superfast Tamil Nadu Express.The...
- Nellai ExpressNellai ExpressThe Nellai Express is a super fast train on the Indian Railways, connecting Tirunelveli Jn with Chennai Egmore.-Numbers and Route:* 119/120* 6119/6120* 2631/2632* 12631/12632...
- Pallavan ExpressPallavan ExpressThe Pallavan Express is a superfast train operated by the Southern Railway zone of the Indian Railways. This train connects the cities of Tiruchirapalli and Chennai in the Indian state of Tamil Nadu. It is one of the more prestigious trains of the Southern Railway.-General information:The train...
- Vaigai expressVaigai expressThe Vaigai Express is a super fast day express train running between Chennai and Madurai. It is one of the more prestigious trains of the Southern Railway zone of the Indian railways....
- Rockfort ExpressRockfort ExpressThe Rockfort Express is the most popular night express train that connects Trichy and Chennai Egmore in the South Indian state of Tamil Nadu and extends till Kumbakonam. The train numbered 16178 departs from Kumbakonam at 19:55 Hours and reaches Trichy at 21:55 Hours as a link Express...
- Kovai ExpressKovai ExpressThe Kovai Express is a daily superfast express train on Indian Railways, running between Chennai Central and Coimbatore Junction. Recently ads featuring the mobile phone services operator Vodafone can be spotted on the exteriors of the Kovai Express coaches. Train Number 2675 starts from Chennai...
- Pandian ExpressPandian ExpressThe Pandian Express is a train route of the Southern Railway zone of the Indian Railways and runs between Chennai Egmore and Madurai Junction via Tiruchirapalli. The name of the train commemorates the 10th-13th century Pandian Kingdom of Tamil Nadu. It is a standard train consisting of 24 coaches...
- Pearl City ExpressPearl City ExpressThe Pearl City Express is a superfast express train route of the Southern Railway, a zone of the Indian Railways.-Route and Number :As per the Indian Railways numbering system, this train is numbered as 12693 in the downward direction, i.e. from Chennai Egmore to Tuticorin and 12694 in the upward...
- Cheran ExpressCheran ExpressThe Cheran Express is an express train in India which runs between Coimbatore Junction and Chennai Central on the Southern Railway zone of the Indian Railways.-Route:...
- Bhopal Shatabdi Express
There's another train called Himsagar Express, runs between Jammu Tawi & Kanyakumari covering almost 3715 km in 70 hours with 70 intermediate stations.