Currently, Indian Railways lacks operational high-speed rail lines; however, eight routes have been approved, with the Mumbai to Ahmedabad corridor currently under development.[1] As of 2023, the regional RapidX services, Gatimaan Express, and Rani Kamalapati (Habibganj)–Hazrat Nizamuddin Vande Bharat Express on the Tughlakabad – Agra Cantonment leg of the route are the fastest train services, reaching speeds of 160 km/h (99 mph).With a maximum operating speed of 320 km/h (199 mph), the first high-speed railway corridor between Mumbai and Ahmedabad (508 km; 316 mi)) is presently being built.[3][4] The corridor will be constructed using Shinkansen technology and will run on standard gauge rather than wide gauge, which is more common across the remainder of the train network. Passengers should be able to travel between the two cities in around three hours, and the cost of the tickets should be competitive with flying. This project was originally scheduled to be finished by December 2023, but it is now anticipated to be finished by October 2028 primarily because to land acquisition problems in Maharashtra and the COVID-19 epidemic. But part of this line, which runs between Surat and Bilimora planned to be opened by 2026.The Ministry of Railways presented the parliament with the "Vision 2020" white paper on December 18, 2009,[8]. The paper outlined plans to build regional high-speed rail projects that would operate at 250–350 km/h (155–217 mph) and to plan corridors that would connect commercial, tourism, and pilgrimage hubs.
The Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) declared its intention to construct the Diamond Quadrilateral high-speed rail project during the 2014 general elections. This project would connect the cities of Chennai, Delhi, Kolkata, and Mumbai with high-speed train.[9] In the speech of the incoming president, this project was approved as a priority for the next government.[10] It was projected that the cost of building one kilometer of high-speed railway track would be between ₹100 crore and ₹140 crore, or US$13 and US$18 million, which is 10–14 times more than the actual cost.
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