Southern Railway (SR) is one of the eighteen zones of Indian Railways. It is headquartered at Chennai and operates across the states of Tamil Nadu, Kerala, Andhra Pradesh and the union territory of Puducherry. The origin of the Southern Railway can be traced back to the Madras Railway formed in 1845. Southern Railway was created on 14 April 1951 by merging three state railways, namely, the Madras and Southern Mahratta Railway, the South Indian Railway Company, and the Mysore State Railway. Southern Railway maintains about 5,081 km (3,157 mi) of railway lines and operates 727 railway stations.
The Pandian Express is a Superfast overnight express train of the Southern Railway zone of the Indian Railways which runs daily between Madurai Junction and Chennai Egmore via Villupuram, Vridhachalam and Tiruchirappalli. The inaugural run of this express train is during Oct 01, 1969 on Wednesday.
The Vaigai Express is an Intercity Express high-speed express train which runs daily between Madurai and Chennai, via Tiruchirappalli. It is operated by the Southern Railway zone of the Indian Railways and was introduced due to increasing demand for a day train between the cities during the 1970s. It was the first instance in which a high-speed train was introduced on a metre-gauge railway within the Southern Railway zone. Vaigai SuperFast is fondly referred to as the "King of Southern Railway"; and its rake sharer Pallavan Express "Prince of Southern Railway" running between Chennai Egmore and Karaikudi Junction are collectively known as the "Chord Line brothers".
The Kanniyakumari Express is a Superfast daily overnight train operated by Southern Railway zone of Indian Railways that runs between Chennai Egmore and Kanniyakumari in India. It is currently being operated with 12633/12634 train numbers on a daily basis.
The Rameswaram Express, previously known as the Boat Mail or Indo-Ceylon Express, is an express train that connects Mandapam with the state capital Chennai via Tambaram, Chengalpet, Melmaruvattur, Viluppuram, Cuddalore port, Chidambaram, Sirkazhi, Mayiladuthurai, Tanjore, Tiruchchirappalli, Pudukkottai, Karaikudi, Sivagangai, Manamadurai and Ramanathapuram. During the 1900s, it was a combined train and steamer ferry service between India and Ceylon. Connecting Chennai and Colombo, the system initially utilised a rail-to-sea operation, but changed to a rail-to-sea-to-rail operation. Passengers could buy a single ticket for the journey. Now, it runs from Chennai Egmore to Rameswaram via Villuppuram, Kumbakonam, Tiruchchirappalli, Pudukkottai, Karaikkudi, Devakottai, Manamadurai, Paramakkudi, Ramanathapuram, Mandapam, and Pamban.
Ananthapuri Superfast Express is an superfast express train running between Kollam Junction and Chennai Egmore via Thiruvananthapuram Central, Tirunelveli Junction, Virudhunagar junction, Madurai Junction, Tiruchchirappalli Junction and Villupuram Junction through the trunk line and chord lines in southern India. It is a daily overnight Superfast Express service.This train is to be converted from ICF coaches to LHB coaches before March 31, 2024..
Mysore–Mayiladuthurai Express is a overnight regional rail service connecting Mayiladuthurai Junction in Tamil Nadu with Mysore Junction in Karnataka via Bangalore City, Erode Junction, Tiruchchirappalli Junction and Thanjavur Junction.
The Silambu Super fast Express (20681/20682) is a train that runs between Chennai Egmore and Sengottai via Karaikkudi Junction. Initially it ran up to Manamadurai, later it was extended up to Sengottai. It was the only train in Indian Railways where LHB rakes were replaced by ICF coaches again. According to IR if a train gets new LHB coaches it won't be converted to ICF. But this train was again replaced with ICF coaches after getting new LHB rakes. The train must to be restored with LHB coaches before December 31, 2023.
The Uzhavan Express is a train route of the Southern Railway zone of the Indian Railways and runs between Chennai Egmore and Thanjavur Junction. The express was introduced on 1 September 2013. It operates daily and covers a distance of 351 km.
Kollam Junction railway station is an NSG–3 category Indian railway station in Thiruvananthapuram railway division of Southern Railway zone.) It is a junction station situated in the city of Kollam in Kerala, India. It is the second largest railway station in Kerala in terms of area and largest in terms of number of tracks and one of the oldest railway stations in the state. It is also the second busiest railway station in Kerala in terms of trains handled per day. World's third longest railway platform is situated at Kollam railway station.
Chennai Egmore–Mangaluru Central Express is an express train connecting Chennai in Tamil Nadu, India with Mangalore in Karnataka, India. The main cities it passes through are Chennai Egmore, Villuppuram, Tiruchirappalli, Karur, Erode, Coimbatore, Palakkad, Tirur (Malappuram), Kozhikode, Kannur, Kasargod and Mangalore
Punalur railway station is the second-largest Railway Station In Kollam District located at Nedumkayam, Punalur on the Kollam–Sengottai branch line. It is the Gateway of Sabarimala. For Sabarimala devotees from Tamil Nadu, Andhra, Telangana and Karnataka, SCT–PUU is the easy way. The temples related to Sabarimala like Achankovil, Aryankavu, and Kulathuppuzha are Located near Punalur. The Kollam–Shencottah railway line is the first railway line in erstwhile Travancore state and is more than a century old. The Kollam–Sengottai section is part of the Kollam–Chennai metre-gauge rail route commissioned by the British during 1904. The line which was metre gauge has been completely converted into broad gauge and train services started.
Salem division is one of the six divisions of Southern Railway zone. Its headquarters is at Salem, Tamil Nadu.
Transport in Kollam includes various modes of road, rail and water transportation in the city and its suburbs. State-owned Kerala State Road Transport Corporation buses, private buses, Indian Railways, state-owned Kerala State Water Transport Department boats & ferry, taxis and auto rickshaws are serving the city of Kollam. The city had a strong commercial reputation since the days of the Phoenicians and Romans. Ibn Battuta mentioned Kollam Port as one of the five Indian ports he had seen during the course of his twenty-four year travels.
The Chendur Superfast Express is an Express train operated by Southern Railway zone of Indian railways. This train runs between Thiruchendur and Chennai Egmore. It is a daily overnight service and an important train of Tiruchendur–Tirunelveli line.
Sengottai railway station is an NSG–5 category Indian railway station in Madurai railway division of Southern Railway zone. It serves Sengottai, located in Tenkasi district of the Indian state of Tamil Nadu. It lies on Kollam–Sengottai branch line and Sengottai- Virudunagar line. The Kollam–Shencottah railway line is the first railway line in erstwhile Travancore state and is more than a century old. The Kollam–Sengottai section is part of the Kollam–Chennai metre-gauge rail route commissioned by the British during 1904. The line which was metre gauge has been completely converted into broad gauge and train services started.
The Mumbai Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj Terminus–Mangaluru Junction Superfast Express is a Superfast train of the Indian Railways runs between Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj Terminus Mumbai in Maharashtra and Mangalore Junction of Karnataka. It is currently being operated with 12133/12134 train numbers on daily basis.
The 20691 / 20692 Tambaram–Nagercoil Antyodaya Express is an express train of the Indian Railways connecting Chennai Tambaram and Nagercoil Junction in Tamil Nadu. It is operated daily from Chennai Tambaram to Nagercoil Junction as train number 20691, and from Nagercoil Junction to Chennai Tambaram as train number 20692.
The Chennai Egmore–Kollam Junction Express is a daily train that runs between Chennai Egmore and Kollam Junction in India. It is the successor of 115 years old Quilon Mail, which ran once upon a time in metre-gauge lines between Madras and Quilon.
