A Vande Bharat Express crosses the Chenab Bridge for the first time, Thursday after Railways Minister Ashwini Vaishnaw flagged off the 20-coach train service between Jammu and Srinagar. Services for the public will commence on May 2. (PTI)Railway Minister Ashwini Vaishnaw on Thursday flagged off the first direct Vande Bharat Express from Jammu to Srinagar, which will not only provide all-weather connectivity between the UT capitals but also reduce travel time. It takes 6.5 to 7 hours to travel by car via the Jammu-Srinagar national highway (NH44), which can be closed for days due to landslides during rain and snowfall. With the train, the journey will be completed in just under five hours.Vande Bharat’s scheduleThe train with 20 coaches will operate six days a week from May 2 (except Tuesdays). This is an extended operation, as the Vande Bharat Express with eight coaches has been operational on the Katra-Srinagar section since June 2025.The extended train will depart from Jammu Tawi railway station 6.20 am and reach Srinagar at 11.10 am, covering a distance of around 266 km. From Srinagar, the train will depart at 8 am to reach Jammu Tawi by 12.40 pm. With brief halts at Katra, Reasi and Banihal stations, it will ease pressure on vehicular traffic on NH44 and provide relief to thousands of daily commuters.Feat of engineeringMoving through deep gorges and densely forested valleys in the backdrop of the Shivaliks, Pir Panjal and the Himalayas, the electrically propelled engine-hauled Vande Bharat covers various engineering marvels.The 111 km-long Katra-Banihal stretch includes 27 tunnels and 49 bridges, including the world’s highest Rail Arch Bridge over the Chenab River, and India’s first cable-stayed rail bridge over Anji Khad. While the Chenab bridge is 35 m higher than the Eiffel Tower, the bridge over Anji Khad has at its heart an inverted Y-shaped pylon or bridge pillar that climbs 193 m above its foundation, which is more than double the height of the Qutub Minar.The rail line passes through India’s longest tunnel, measuring 12.77 km, connecting Khari with Sumber. It also includes the country’s second and third-longest tunnels.Challenges and innovationsMore than 205 km of motorable roads were built for Rs 2,000 crore to transport heavy machinery, construction material, and workers to construction sites.Story continues below this adIn view of the challenges faced in constructing highly complex tunnels and huge bridges in unstable mountainous terrain, railway engineers devised a novel tunnelling method to prevent any structural problems.With heated windshields, advanced heating systems and insulated toilets, the train remains operational and comfortable for passengers throughout the year. Its piping system is such that the water supply in the train cannot freeze even at -10 degree temperatures. During winter, a snow-removing locomotive engine moves ahead to clear the tracks, while seismic dampers have also been installed to absorb tremors in this high-risk seismic zone.The railway line has also provided the people of Kashmir a means to transport commercial goods such as apples, dry fruits, pashmina shawls and handicrafts to other parts of the country in the shortest possible time and at a significantly lower cost. While more than five lakh people have travelled via the Vande Bharat between Katra and Srinagar so far, nearly two crore kg of apples have been transported from Kashmir to Delhi, according to an official press release.