Taj Express

Taj Express
Overview
Locale	Delhi, Haryana, Uttar Pradesh, Rajasthan & Madhya Pradesh
First service	1st October, 1964 ; between New Delhi & Agra
Route
Termini	New Delhi ; Gwalior Junction
Stops	10
Distance travelled	410 km (250 mi)
Average journey time	7 hours
Service frequency	Daily
Train number(s)	12279 / 12280
On-board services
Class(es)	Executive Class Premium Class
Seating arrangements	CC & EC
Sleeping arrangements	No
Catering facilities	Yes
Technical
Track gauge	1,676 mm (5 ft 6 in)
Operating speed	59 km/h (37 mph) average with halts

Last updated September 26, 2023

The Taj Express was started in 1964 to serve tourists traveling from Delhi to Agra. It reduced the traveling time from over three hours to around two and a half hours. Taj Express was started along the lines of Deccan Queen- which ran as a high-speed commuter-special train between Pune Junction and CSMT Mumbai (ex Victoria Terminus Bombay) – and provided a quick and comfortable journey between Agra and Delhi. It was a very popular train especially among foreign tourists, before the Bhopal Shatabdi was introduced in 1988. The train was later extended up to Gwalior, then to Jhansi in 2006. It was named after Taj Mahal

History

In 1964 Taj Express was introduced from New Delhi to Agra. Running at 105 km/h, it brought down travel time on this route to 2h 35m. It was hauled by a WP-7003 steam engine. It was a train that was immensely popular with tourists, particularly foreigners, as it gave them ample time to visit the Taj Mahal and neighbouring monuments before returning to Delhi that evening. It was posted on Facebook page of Ministry of Railways, Government of India (Facebook confirmed that this is the authentic profile for this public figure.) on 1st October 2022: On this day in 1964, Taj Express, the then fastest train on the Indian Railways Network was introduced between New Delhi and Agra Cantt.
Surprisingly, the train did not run on Wednesdays. The Taj Mahal monument was then closed to tourists on Mondays ^[1] and the one day off on Wednesdays was a direct financial loss. The Archaeological Survey of India then decided that the Taj Mahal would remain closed on Fridays for the public except for Muslims who could pray in the mosque between 12 noon to 2 P.M.^[2] The Taj Express still did not operate on Wednesdays.
In Oct, 1982 The Taj Express began using diesel locomotives (WDM-2).
In 1985, then-Railway Minister Madhavrao Scindia extended the Taj Express to Gwalior Junction. Journey time was 5hrs 20 min, leaving Hazrat Nizamuddin at 0710 am and reaching Gwalior at 1230 pm. The return timings were 1710 pm departure Gwalior and 2230 pm arrival Hazrat Nizamuddin. In 1989, the Wednesdays off was discontinued. The train, however, remained idle for well over four hours at Gwalior.
In 1986 The Taj Express began using electric locomotives.
1 July 2006, the train was extended to Jhansi.
4 January 2016, the train introduced LHB coach.
21 February 2018, the source for 12280 and destination station of 12279, changed from Hazrat Nizamuddin (NZM) to New Delhi (NDLS).

Train Info


Locomotive	Ghaziabad (GZB)	WAP-5	WAP-7


Train coaches	LHB rakes


ENG	Luggage brake & Generator car	AC Chair Car (1st Class)			Chair Car (2nd Class)														General (3rd Class)		Luggage brake & Generator car
L	EOG	C1	C2	C3	D1	D2	D3	D4	D5	D6	D7	D8	D9	D10	D11	D12	D13	D14	GS1	GS2	EOG

Route

The train numbered 12279 goes from Gwalior Junction to New Delhi railway station, and train number is 12280 goes from New Delhi railway station to Gwalior.


Taj Express
#	Station	Code	Average speed / hour	Zone	Address
1	New Delhi	NDLS	40	NR	Ajmeri Gate 110002, Delhi NCT
2	Nizamuddin, Delhi	NZM	70	NR	New Delhi 110013, Delhi NCT
3	Faridabad	FDB	80	NR	PIN 121003, Haryana
4	Mathura	MTJ	90	NCR	Mathura, Uttar Pradesh
5	Raja ki Mandi, Agra	RKM	30	NCR	Agra, Uttar Pradesh
6	Agra Cantt, Agra	AGC	60	NCR	Agra, Uttar Pradesh
7	Dhaulpur	DHO	60	NCR	Dhaulpur, Rajasthan
8	Morena	MRA	60	NCR	Morena, Madhya Pradesh
9	Gwalior Junction	GWL	70	NCR	Gwalior, Madhya Pradesh

Locomotive

As the whole route is electrified the train is generally hauled by WAP-7 from Ghaziabad for its whole journey. But occasionally it is also hauled by WAP-5 from Ghaziabad.

Related Research Articles

The Indian locomotive class WAP-5 is the name of a class of "High Speed" electric locomotives produced and used by Indian Railways. The first 10 locomotives were imported from ABB in Switzerland in 1995. These locomotives are a hybrid design mixing SBB-CFF-FFS Re 460 design and German DB Class 120 mechanics and chassis.

The 12121 / 12122 Madhya Pradesh Sampark Kranti Express, is one of the trains among Sampark Kranti Express trains introduced in the 2005 Indian Railway Budget. The train was announced between Jabalpur and New Delhi. This train presently terminates at Hazrat Nizamuddin railway station in Delhi which is located 8 kilometres (5.0 mi) approximately to south of New Delhi railway station.

The 12807 / 12808 Samata Express is a superfast train between Visakhapatnam in Andhra Pradesh and Hazrat Nizamuddin in New Delhi and is operated by South Coast Railways. This train is also known as Vizag Steel Samata Superfast Express and Queen of Visakhapatnam city. Earlier the frequency of the train was three days a week but it was extended to five days a week in 2011. With effect from 8 January 2011, the train departs Visakhapatnam on Sunday, Tuesday, Wednesday, Thursday and Saturday. Similarly, with effect from 10 January 2011 the train departs Hazrat Nizamuddin on Monday, Tuesday, Thursday, Friday and Saturday. The average speed of the train is 60 km per hour. Samata in Sanskrit means Equality.

The 12963/12964 Mewar Express is a Superfast Express running from Hazrat Nizamuddin, New Delhi to Udaipur City. It traverses the 744 kilometres (462 mi) journey in 12 hours 20 minutes, with 16 halts in between. The erstwhile kingdom in southern Rajasthan encompassing Udaipur was called Mewar.

The 12715 / 12716 Sachkhand Express is Superfast train operated by Indian Railways on a daily basis between the cities of Huzur Sahib Nanded in Maharashtra to Amritsar in Punjab. This train links two famous Sikh shrines. The train is named after Sachkhand Sahib Gurudwara, situated in Nanded.

Thirukural Express is a superfast express train in India, running between Kanniyakumari in Tamil Nadu which is the southernmost tip of the Indian Subcontinent, and Hazrat Nizamuddin in New Delhi. From December 2020, it runs with newly manufactured LHB rakes.

The 22691 / 22692 KSR Bengaluru–Hazrat Nizamuddin Rajdhani Express. This train connects Bangalore and Delhi. It was the fastest service on the Bangalore & Delhi sector before Yeshvantapur Delhi Sarai Rohilla AC Duronto Express running via Secunderabad–Nagpur–Bhopal–Agra route.

The Hazrat Nizamuddin - Gwalior Express was a mail/express train of Indian Railways, which used to run between Hazrat Nizamuddin railway station of Delhi, the capital city of India and Gwalior Junction railway station of Gwalior, the princely city and educational hub of the Central Indian state Madhya Pradesh. The train was India's fifth ISO Certified train.

Hazrat Nizamuddin – Jabalpur Express is a SuperFast category train of Indian Railways, which runs between Hazrat Nizamuddin railway station of Delhi, the capital city of India and Jabalpur Junction railway station of Jabalpur, the major tourist city of Central Indian state, Madhya Pradesh. The train is India's ISO Certified train.

The 12191 / 12192 Jabalpur–New Delhi Superfast Express also known as Shridham Express is a daily Superfast e of Madhya Pradesh and Hazrat Nizamuddin railway station of Delhi, the capital city of India.

The 12189 / 12190 Mahakoshal Express is a daily Express train of the Indian Railways, which runs between Jabalpur Junction railway station of Jabalpur, one of the important cities and military cantonment hub of the Central Indian state Madhya Pradesh and Hazrat Nizamuddin railway station of Delhi, the capital city of India.

Jhansi Junction railway station (JHS), officially Virangana Lakshmibai Jhansi Railway Station (VGLJ), is a major railway junction in the city of Jhansi in Bundelkhand region of Uttar Pradesh. It is one of the busiest and largest railway stations in India. It hosts various trains of Indian Railways like the Gatimaan Express, which is the fastest train of India, as well as others like Bundelkhand Express. It is a major halt for various important trains of Indian Railways like five sets of Rajdhani Express bound for Mumbai, Chennai, Bengaluru, Hyderabad etc. One set of Bhopal Shatabdi Express, three Duronto Express trains, Punjab Mail one of the oldest running trains in India, Kerala Express, Karnataka Express, etc.

The 22455 / 22456 Sainagar Shirdi–Kalka Superfast Express is a Express train belonging to Indian Railways Northern Railway zone that run between Sainagar Shirdi and Kalka in India.

The 22109 / 10 Lokmanya Tilak Terminus–Hazrat Nizamuddin AC Express was an AC Superfast Express express train belonging to Indian Railways – Central Railway zone that ran between Lokmanya Tilak Terminus and Hazrat Nizamuddin in India.

The 12447 / 12448 Uttar Pradesh Sampark Kranti Express is a Superfast Express train of the Sampark Kranti Express series belonging to Indian Railways – Northern Railway zone that runs between Manikpur Junction and Hazrat Nizamuddin in India.

The 12049 / 12050 Gatimaan Express is India's first semi-high speed train that runs between Delhi and Jhansi. It takes 265 minutes to cover the 403 km (250 mi) journey from Hazrat Nizamuddin to Virangana Lakshmibai Junction railway stations with an average speed of 91 km/h (57 mph).

The 12803 / 12804 Visakhapatnam Swarna Jayanti Express is a "Superfast Express" train linking Visakhapatnam and the Hazrat Nizamuddin near New Delhi, India.

Shri Chhatrapati Shahu Maharaj Terminus Kolhapur - Hazrat Nizamuddin Superfast Express is a Superfast express train of the Indian Railways connecting Shri Chhatrapati Shahu Maharaj Terminus in Maharashtra and Hazrat Nizamuddin in Delhi. It is currently being operated with 12147/12148 train numbers on once in week basis.

The 22221 / 22222 Mumbai Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj Terminus–Hazrat Nizamuddin Rajdhani Express also known as Central Railway (CR) Rajdhani Express and Push Pull Rajdhani is a daily train of Rajdhani class operated by Central Railway between Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj Terminus and Hazrat Nizamuddin. Train no. 22221 leaves Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj Terminus at 16:00 daily and arrives Hazrat Nizamuddin at 09:55 every day. The return train 22222 leaves Hazrat Nizamuddin at 16:55 daily and arrives Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj Terminus at 11:15 daily. CR Rajdhani Express runs with an average speed of 86 km/h.

The 12753 / 12754 Marathwada Sampark Kranti Express is a Superfast express train of the Sampark Kranti Express series belonging to Indian Railways – South Central Railway zone that runs between Hazur Sahib Nanded and Hazrat Nizamuddin in India.

References

↑ "Taj Mahal in Agra Tours, Taj Mahal in Agra travel, Taj Mahal in Agra Tour packages, Taj Mahal in Agra Tourism, Golden Triangle Travel". Archived from the original on 30 January 2016. Retrieved 11 January 2017.
↑ "Taj Mahal, Uttar Pradesh, Archaeological Survey of India". Archived from the original on 15 February 2015. Retrieved 15 February 2015.

External links

This page is based on this Wikipedia article
Text is available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 license; additional terms may apply.
Images, videos and audio are available under their respective licenses.

[1] "Taj Mahal in Agra Tours, Taj Mahal in Agra travel, Taj Mahal in Agra Tour packages, Taj Mahal in Agra Tourism, Golden Triangle Travel". Archived from the original on 30 January 2016. Retrieved 11 January 2017.

[2] "Taj Mahal, Uttar Pradesh, Archaeological Survey of India". Archived from the original on 15 February 2015. Retrieved 15 February 2015.

[1]

[2]

v t e Railways in Northern India
National network/ trunk lines	Howrah–Delhi main line New Delhi–Chennai main line New Delhi–Mumbai main line Howrah–Gaya–Delhi line Delhi–Jaipur line Jaipur–Ahmedabad line
Branch lines/ sections	Agra–Bhopal section Ahmedabad–Udaipur line Allahabad–Mau–Gorakhpur main line Ambala–Attari line Amritsar–Khem Karan line Amritsar–Pathankot line Aunrihar–Jaunpur line Barauni–Gorakhpur, Raxaul and Jainagar lines Bathinda–Rewari line Bathinda–Rajpura line Bikaner–Rewari line Bhanupli–Leh line Chandigarh–Sahnewal line Delhi–Fazilka line Delhi–Kalka line Delhi–Meerut–Saharanpur line Delhi–Moradabad line Jalandhar–Firozpur line Jalandhar–Jammu line Jammu–Baramulla line Jodhpur–Bathinda line Jodhpur–Jaisalmer line Kanpur–Delhi section Laksar–Dehradun line Lucknow–Gorakhpur line Lucknow–Moradabad line Ludhiana–Fazilka line Ludhiana–Jakhal line Marwar Junction–Munabao line Mathura–Vadodara section Mau–Ghazipur–Dildarnagar main line Merta Road–Rewari line Moradabad–Ambala line Mughalsarai–Kanpur section Rewari–Rohtak line Shri Ganganagar–Sadulpur line Suratgarh–Bathinda line Varanasi–Chhapra line Varanasi–Lucknow main line Varanasi–Rae Bareli–Lucknow line Varanasi–Sultanpur–Lucknow line
Urban and suburban rail transport	Delhi Suburban Railway Delhi Metro (Blue Green Grey Magenta Orange Pink Red Violet Yellow) Rapid Metro Gurgaon Lucknow–Kanpur Suburban Railway Barabanki–Lucknow Suburban Railway Delhi–Meerut RRTS
Heritage railways	Kalka–Shimla Railway
Monorails	Patiala State Monorail Trainways
Defunct lines	Jammu–Sialkot line
Manufacturing units and workshops	Banaras Locomotive Works Rail Coach Factory, Kapurthala Modern Coach Factory, Raebareli
Railway companies	Northern Railway North Eastern Railway North Central Railway North Western Railway East Indian Railway Company Kangra Valley Railway Rajputana–Malwa Railway Tirhut Railway Oudh and Tirhut Railway Indian Branch Railway Company Oudh and Rohilkhand Railway Cawnpore–Burhwal Railway Cawnpore–Barabanki Railway Lucknow–Bareilly Railway Bengal and North Western Railway Rohilkund and Kumaon Railway Mashrak–Thawe Extension Railway Lucknow–Sitapur–Seramow Provincial State Railway Bareilly–Pilibheet Provincial State Railway Segowlie–Raxaul Railway Delhi Metro Rail Corporation National Capital Region Transport Corporation
See also	Indian Railways Bholu (mascot) 1974 railway strike in India Haryana Orbital Rail Corridor

v t e Railways in Central India
Trunk lines	Howrah–Allahabad–Mumbai line Howrah–Nagpur–Mumbai line New Delhi–Chennai main line New Delhi–Mumbai main line
Branch lines/ sections	Bina–Katni line Tatanagar–Bilaspur section Bilaspur–Nagpur section Nagpur–Bhusawal section Allahabad–Jabalpur section Jabalpur–Bhusaval section Agra–Bhopal section Ujjain–Bhopal section Bhopal–Nagpur section Nagpur–Hyderabad line Narkhed–Amravati line Dalli Rajhara–Jagdalpur line Bilaspur–Katni line Indore–Gwalior line
Metro	Bhopal Metro Indore Metro
Defunct lines revived/under revival	Nagpur Chhattisgarh Railway Rajputana–Malwa Railway Satpura Railway
Railway zones	South East Central Railway Western Railway West Central Railway
Railway divisions	Ratlam railway division Bhopal railway division Jabalpur railway division Bilaspur railway division Raipur railway division
Rail transport	Rail transport in Chhattisgarh Rail transport in Madhya Pradesh
See also	Indian Railways Bholu (mascot) Datia rail accident