Western Railway plans ₹307-crore Vande Bharat train maintenance hub at Sabarmati in Ahmedabad: Details
Western Railway’s Ahmedabad division is planning a maintenance hub at Sabarmati to ensure that major repairs of Vande Bharat trains can be carried out in the city, reducing the time required to send trains to other locations for scheduled overhauls.
The ₹307 crore maintenance hub, being built under Phase II of the Sabarmati Integrated Coaching Depot, will bring coach servicing, wheel maintenance and work on key mechanical and electrical systems under one roof, The Times of India reported.
What will the Sabarmati facility include?
Designed for the scheduled maintenance of 24-coach Vande Bharat trains, the facility is expected to strengthen the city’s servicing capacity as the train network grows.
The authorities are developing separate sheds for major repairs, wheel servicing and equipment overhauls. The heavy repair shed, which is nearing completion, will house two maintenance lines: one will allow coaches to be lifted and the bogies to be removed, and the other will support repairs to interiors, passenger amenities, brakes and electrical systems.
Separately, the wheel care shed is complete and set to receive modern equipment for servicing wheels and axles. Four stabling lines, with a combined track length of 2,547 metres, have also been completed. The electrical substation building is finished and has been handed over.
The Sabarmati Integrated Coaching Depot will also be equipped with facilities to overhaul key train components, including traction motors, transformers and other electrical systems. This would allow a wider range of maintenance work to be carried out under one roof.
Citing the project plan, the report said the facility could complete SS-I maintenance on a 24-coach trainset in about 30 days and SS-II maintenance in 45 days. This would allow it to service roughly 12 trainsets annually under SS-I or eight under SS-II.
As soon as it becomes operational, the depot is likely to give the city a dedicated facility for major Vande Bharat maintenance, enabling the railways to carry out scheduled overhauls locally.
Vande Bharat trains: A look at their development and expanding network
Inaugurated by Prime Minister Narendra Modi in February 2019, the first Vande Bharat train travelled between New Delhi and Varanasi. The launch of the train marked a major leap for Indian Railways in terms of speed and convenience since the introduction of Rajdhani trains. It is India’s first semi-high-speed train, equipped with world-class, ‘state-of-the-art’ passenger amenities such as onboard Wi-Fi entertainment, a GPS-based passenger information system, CCTV cameras, bio-vacuum toilets and rotating chairs in executive class. Further, it also has provisions for Divyang-friendly facilities.
As of July 2026, 162 Vande Bharat train services were operating, with the network expanding rapidly across the country after the launch of the first train.
Ahmedabad’s first Vande Bharat connection was launched on September 30, 2022, when PM Modi flagged off the Gandhinagar Capital–Mumbai Central Vande Bharat Express, which serves Ahmedabad.
The Sabarmati hub is expected to support this expanding network by strengthening local maintenance capacity and reducing the need to send trainsets elsewhere for major overhauls.
