Rajdhani, Shatabdi get major safety upgrade, journey to be smoother from October

Indian Railways is all set to make your journey in its premium trains Rajdhani and Shatabdi smoother from October.

Railways has decided to replace the old design couplers connecting the train coaches with the new design centre buffer coupler (CBC), said Railway Board Chairman Ashwani Lohani on Friday. This will reduce the jerks experienced by commuters on board.

The new design couplers have been being used in new Linke Hoffman Busch (LHB) coaches. 

The new CBC couplers will not only smoothen the ride but will be a major safety update as it prevents telescoping of one coach into another during an accident. It also makes coaches from flipping and turning post accidents. It can absorb high-frequency forces and also stops coaches from piling on each other. 

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Thirteen Shatabdi trains and 11 Rajdhani trains which arrive and depart from the Delhi will now have the new couplers. The new couplers are equipped with balanced draft gear which has high capacity shock absorbers.

"The couplers will be replaced in Rajdhani and Shatabdi trains running in Northern Railways by October this year. This will remove the jerks experienced by passengers on board trains," said Lohani.

A coupler is a device which connects coaches with each other and with the locomotive. The equipment that connects the couplings to the rolling stock is known as the draft gear.