Semi high-speed rail corridor to extend to Bhavnagar

Ahmedabad: The 134km broad-gauge semi-high-speed rail corridor under the Sarkhej-Dholera double-line project is now undergoing a survey to further extend the corridor to Bhavnagar to further improve regional connectivity. The state govt and Indian Railways at a press conference on Friday stated that the new corridor will connect Ahmedabad with the Dholera Special Investment Region (SIR), the upcoming Dholera International Airport and the National Maritime Heritage Complex at Lothal.

Ahmedabad divisional railway manager Ved Prakash said it will be the first corridor to run semi-high-speed trains on a broad-gauge network. While the corridor has been designed for a top speed of 220kmph, trains are expected to operate at 200kmph. Future operations on the route are expected to feature Namo Bharat trains equipped with the next-gen 'Kavach 5.0’ safety system. “The project would establish a new benchmark in safety and automatic train protection,” Prakash said.

Cleared by the Cabinet Committee on Economic Affairs under Prime Minister Narendra Modi, the project will be developed at an estimated Rs 20,667 crore using indigenous technology.

State chief secretary Manoj Kumar Das said the project is expected to drastically cut travel time and create seamless multimodal connectivity. “The Sarkhej-Dholera semi-high-speed double-line project will take Dholera’s development to new heights.” The travel time from Sabarmati to Dholera airport is expected to reduce to 48 minutes, while the journey from Sarkhej to Dholera airport would take about 38 minutes.

Prakash said the corridor will connect Ahmedabad, Dholera-SIR, the upcoming Dholera international airport and the National Maritime Heritage Complex.

The line will have 13 stations, three major bridges, 74km of viaducts, 39 road underpasses and two rail-over-rail bridges. The total track length will be about 293km, with the completion target set at four years. Railway officials said the alignment will run parallel to the expressway, improving fast passenger movement and freight integration. Das said the corridor would give Dholera 360-degree connectivity by linking air, road, rail and port infrastructure.

Officials said that Metro integration has also been planned at Sabarmati, Gandhigram and Vastrapur stations. Sabarmati station will connect with the Mumbai-Ahmedabad bullet train corridor, while Moriya station will link with the Dedicated Freight Corridor.