Kerala Express

The 12625 / 12626 Kerala S. F Express is a daily Superfast Express train of the Indian Railways that connects the National Capital of India New Delhi to State Capital of Kerala Thiruvananthapuram Central. It is the Daily second longest train after 22053/22054 Dibrugarh Kanniyakumari Dibrugarh Vivek Superfast Express which runs daily that travels 4139 km in more than 70 hours . Kerala express travels 3031 km of distance in 51 hours and 10 minutes . It frequency is Daily .

Kerala Express

Kerala Express near Warangal.
Overview
Service type	Superfast
First service	10 January 1977; 47 years ago (10 January 1977) (split train as Kerala–Karnataka (KK) Express )[1] 1983; 41 years ago (1983) (as Kerala Express)[2]
Current operator(s)	Southern Railway
Route
Termini	New Delhi (NDLS) Thiruvananthapuram Central (TVC)
Stops	41
Distance travelled	3,031 km (1,883 mi)
Average journey time	49 hours 25 minutes
Service frequency	Daily
Train number(s)	12625 / 12626
On-board services
Class(es)	AC 2 tier, AC 3 tier, AC 3 tier Economy, Sleeper class, General Unreserved
Seating arrangements	Yes
Sleeping arrangements	Yes
Catering facilities	Available
Observation facilities	Large windows
Baggage facilities	Available
Other facilities	Below the seats
Technical
Rolling stock	LHB coach
Track gauge	1,676 mm (5 ft 6 in)
Operating speed	130 km/h (81 mph) maximum, 61 km/h (38 mph) average including halts.
Route map

History

The Kerala Express was introduced in 1977 as a split train named Kerala–Karnataka (KK) Express.^[3] The composition of Karnataka–Kerala Express has been increased from 14 coaches to 21 coaches with effect from 29 January 1981.^[4]

Kerala Exp briefly also had a link portion to Mangalore between 1987-1992, where a portion of this train used to bifurcate/amalgamate at Palakkad Junction. It was Christined 2625/2626A Link Mangala Exp. This arrangement continued until Mangala Exp was made an independent train in 1993.

The train is running with LHB rakes with effect from 4 November 2018.^[5]

Kerala Express – LHB coach – End on Generator coach

Kerala Express – LHB coach – AC 2 tier

Kerala Express – LHB coach – AC 3 tier

Kerala Express – LHB coach – Sleeper class

Traction

It is hauled by a Royapuram / Erode based WAP 7 locomotive from end to end.

See also

• Rajdhani Express
• Kerala Sampark Kranti Express
• Mangala Lakshadweep Express
• Vivek Express
• Karnataka Express
• Thiruvananthapuram Central
• New Delhi

References

1. "Railway Budget speech 1977-78 (interim)" (PDF). www.indianrailways.gov.in. Ministry of Railways. 28 March 1977.
2. "Railway Budget speech 1983-199084" (PDF). www.indianrailways.gov.in. Ministry of Railways. 24 March 1983.
3. Interim, Railway Budget (28 March 1977). "Interim Railway Budget Madhu Dandavate" (PDF). www.indianrailways.gov.in.
4. "Railway Budget speech 1981-82" (PDF). www.indianrailways.gov.in. Ministry of Railways. 19 February 1981.
5. "Kerala misses out on promised trains, backup coaches as authorities turn a blind eye". OnManorama. Retrieved 28 April 2021.