Commuters enjoyed the first upgrade in rolling stock since 1925 yesterday when a modern train rolled on to the overcrowded Bombay rail network.

The 200 million rupee (£2.4 million) silver bullet – one of 157 trains to be commissioned over the next three years – is central to plans to transform India’s financial capital into a modern Asian city.

The stainless steel train, complete with doors, ventilation, pneumatic suspension, handrails and cushioned seats, marked the first fleet upgrade since 1925, when the line was electrified and the trains were built in India by Britons using technology then employed by London Underground. More than six million commuters use the dilapidated network every day.

The silver and violet trains, which will be computer-operated and 20 per cent faster than their predecessors, are being built by a Madras company with German technology provided by Siemens.

It is claimed that their quieter engines will keep the noise below 66 decibels, compared with 90 decibels on the old trains, and that they will be more eco-friendly by regenerating electricity when they brake.

The nine-coach, air-cooled trains have an official capacity of 1,800 but are expected to carry 4,500 passengers at peak hours: 100 sitting and 400 standing in each compartment. While the new model does come with sliding doors, they will be fixed open.

“The doors cannot be closed in Bombay because people travel in such large numbers,” P. C. Sehgal, the managing director of the project, said.

Given the constraint of the Bombay peninsula, which means jammed roads along its north-south axis, the rail network is the main mode of mass transport. The first railway system to be built by the British in India in 1853, it is still the fastest way to get around the city.

It is also the most dangerous. More than 3,500 people die on the network each year because of overcrowding. Deaths occur when people fall from platforms during the crush to get on and off trains or attempt to avoid busy footbridges by darting across the tracks. Travellers sitting on the roof of trains can be electrocuted by overhead wires.

At least 186 people were killed and about 700 injured when a series of terrorist bombs encased in pressure cookers exploded in packed carriages during the rush hour in July last year.

The new trains are part of a £485 million revamp of Bombay’s transport infrastructure, which has been plagued by delays after officially starting eight years ago. The cost will be covered by the state government and the World Bank. Up to five new trains will be added each month after undergoing at least eight different tests to ensure that they are up to the challenge of working on the world’s most densely populated urban railway system.

A factor known as the “super-dense crush load”, invented by Indian rail officials, forecasts 14 to 16 passengers standing on each square metre of carriage floor space

Railway revamp

— Nearly 90 per cent of people commuting into Bombay travel by train

— More than 19,000 families have been resettled to make way for transport improvements

— Surcharges of 10 and 20 rupees (12p and 24p) were added to second and first-class fares to fund the project

Source: Mumbai Metropolitan Region Development Authority

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