I had taken this train from Bandra Terminus to Bilimora in 2S coach in Feb 2024 and listing some tips based on my experience:
1. Coach Condition: The LHB 2S coach in this train is very comfortable and has the seats facing each other with large leg room. This should be the ideal arrangement and Railways should produce LHB 2S coaches with this layout. My coach was D3 that was 2018 made but I noticed that all the 2s coaches had this same arrangement. One charging point was available in each bay...
more... of 6 seats. The top luggage rack was wide enough to accomodate a medium sized trolley bag.
2. Cleanliness and Maintenance: The coaches were very clean and well maintained. The toilets were in satisfactory condition from BDTS.
3. Punctuality: This is a punctual train which gets good priority on the route. We departed BDTS with 8 mins delay (due to Chain Pulling on departure) and reached Bilimora with a delay of 13 mins. It hits very good speeds after Virar.
4. Food: I had taken home cooked food and hence did not try the food onboard. There is no pantry but there are vendors selling various items like Idli Chutney, Medu Vada Chutney, Veg Cutlet, Khaman, Chai and Water.
5. Ticket Availability: This train has good patronage and hence ticket availability might be an issue on Holidays, Weekends and Mondays. If you book about 15 days in advance, the tickets should be easily available.
6. Unreserved Coaches: All the UR coaches are at the back end of the train. This being an intercity train, expect a lot of passengers illegally boarding the 2S coach and travelling in the corridor.
7. Railfanning: It is a nice train for railfanning while traveling in non ac coaches. It goes on a spree and hits high speeds after Virar. The track sounds during the speedy run by the LHB coaches are soothing. Usually gets a WAP-7 in lead.
Although there were unauthorized passengers travelling in the corridor of my 2s coach, this did not cause any issue or conflict during my journey. If you are traveling to Surat or any destination enroute, this should be your preferred train.
Have a safe trip.
Vivek
please wait...Translate to EnglishYo, so I took this train from Bandra Terminus to Bilimora in the 2S coach in Feb 2024 and I wanna share some tips based on my experience:
1. Coach Condition: The 2S coach in this train is mad comfortable, bro. The seats face each other and there's plenty of legroom. Railways should make more coaches like this. My coach was D3, made in 2018, and all the 2S coaches had the same setup. There was one charging point for every 6 seats and the luggage rack was big enough for a medium-sized bag.
2. Cleanliness and Maintenance: The coaches were hella clean and well-taken care of. The toilets were decent.
3. Punctuality: This train is on time, man. We left 8 minutes late 'cause someone pulled the emergency chain, but we only arrived 13 minutes late. It goes fast after Virar.
4. Food: I brought my own food, so I didn't try the onboard stuff. There's no pantry, but there are vendors selling stuff like idli, vada, cutlets, samosas, chai, and water.
5. Ticket Availability: The train is hella popular, so getting tickets might be hard on holidays, weekends, and Mondays. If you book 15 days in advance, you should be good.
6. Unreserved Coaches: The unreserved coaches are at the end of the train. Since it's an intercity train, lots of people illegally hop on the 2S coach and chill in the corridor.
7. Railfanning: If you're into train spotting, this is a solid train, especially in the non-AC coaches. It goes fast after Virar and the sounds of the tracks are pretty chill. It usually has a WAP-7 as the front engine.
Even though there were people in the corridor of my 2S coach without tickets, it didn't cause any problems. If you're heading to Surat or anywhere on the way, this is a good train to take.
Have a safe trip.
Vivek