Vande Bharat: Chennai route leadssurge, new lines see mixed response

Bengaluru: Three years after it first rolled out, South India's maiden Vande Bharat Express continues to race ahead in popularity. The Mysuru-Chennai service (train number 20607/20608), flagged off on Nov 11, 2022, remains Bengaluru's most successful semi-high-speed train, clocking the highest revenue among all Vande Bharat services connected to the city, according to data released by South Western Railway (SWR) recently.The Chennai-Mysuru service, passing through Bengaluru, recorded an average 119.8% booking rate in 2025-26. Over 4 lakh passengers travelled on the route last fiscal, helping the railways earn Rs 41.2 crore. The return journey from Mysuru to Chennai followed closely behind, carrying 3.9 lakh passengers and generating Rs 39.6 crore in revenue.Driven by the demand, the railways introduced a second Vande Bharat (train number 20663/20664) on the same corridor. The additional Mysuru-Chennai service has emerged as the most overbooked Vande Bharat routed via Bengaluru, touching a 127% booking rate while ferrying over 2 lakh passengers.The Bengaluru-Hyderabad Vande Bharat is also doing well. Operating now with 16-coach rakes, the Yeswanthpur-Kacheguda service maintains around 90% occupancy in both directions and contributes nearly Rs 76 crore in combined revenue annually. "Just like the Chennai one, the Hyderabad Vande Bharat initially had more than 100% occupancy. After its conversion to a 16-car rake, the numbers have slightly dipped, but the revenue is almost similar," a senior South Western Railway official told TOI.Belagavi and Madurai services struggleHowever, certain routes through Bengaluru face quite the opposite fortunes. The recently-launched Bengaluru-Belagavi Vande Bharat struggles with its ridership.The service starting from Belagavi has the lowest booking percentage of 64.3, generating just Rs 8.9 crore in revenue between Aug 2025 and April 2026. Though the service from Bengaluru to Belagavi has a slightly better booking of 86%, it is yet to become a passenger favourite.According to SWR, the Belagavi-Bengaluru service in Aug carried more than 5,300 passengers, in Sept it rose to 7,491 passengers, and Oct peaked with 9,273 passengers. Sources also emphasise that the evening departure timing from Belagavi has affected the bookings."Bookings improved from 55% to 67%. Earnings also increased monthly," the zone said, drawing parallels to the Kalaburagi route, which climbed up to a 93% occupancy after an initial 42% when it started.Another service struggling to gain popularity is the Bengaluru-Madurai Vande Bharat. From the 312 trips completed in the past fiscal, the service generated an underwhelming booking percentage of 68.5. The return direction saw a slight improvement to 78.9%, but is yet to match the figures for the other trains running along the route.Ernakulam service reflects popularityIf there is a semi-high-speed train that could match the popularity of the Chennai Vande Bharat, it is its Ernakulam counterpart. Launched in Nov last year, the train has already carried more than 1.7 lakh passengers across both directions till March.Within five months, the service earned the railways a revenue of more than Rs 10 crore each in both directions with the booking percentage crossing 120%. Despite significant demand and high waiting list numbers, the train still runs with an eight-coach rake. "That decision (to increase the number of coaches) should come from the Railway Board. As of now, there is no concrete movement," SWR's chief public relations officer Manjunath Kanamadi told TOI.—-—- Box1VB in the pipelineMumbai CSMT- KSR Bengaluru sleeper Status: To be flagged off by Aug—Bengaluru-MadgaonStatus: Proposed——-Bengaluru-MangaluruStatus: Approved by ministry, awaiting notification ——-Box 2Most sought-after servicesVande BharatTrips completedBooking percentageRevenue (in crore Rs)Passengers carriedChennai-Mysuru (20607)312119.941.24.2 lakhMysuru-Chennai(20608)312111.439.63.9 lakhChennai-Mysuru(20664)31389.8211.9 lakhMysuru-Chennai(20663)313127.0520.22.1 lakhHyderabad-B'luru31389.7437.72.7 lakhB'luru-Hyderabad31390.6239.32.7 lakhErnakulam-B'luru121141.7111.190,885B'luru-Ernakulam121126.9510.381,418Not so popular routesVande Bharat Trips completedBooking percentageRevenue (in crore Rs)Passengers carriedB'luru-B'gavi19986.211.490,877B'gavi-B'luru19964.38.967,821B'luru-Madurai31278.926.92.1 lakhMadurai-B'luru31268.522.31.9Figures for 2025-26Source: SWR