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The Chennai Egmore–Kollam Junction Express (16101/16102, earlier known as the Quilon Mail) is a daily train that runs between Chennai Egmore and in India. It is the successor of 115-year-old
Quilon Mail Kollam (;), is an ancient seaport and the List of cities and towns in Kerala, fourth largest city in the Indian state of Kerala. Located on the southern tip of the Malabar Coast of the Arabian Sea, the city is on the banks of Ashtamudi Lake ...
, which ran once upon a time in metre-gauge lines between Madras and Quilon.


History

Opened on 1 June 1904, the Quilon–Madras rail line was the first line in
Travancore The kingdom of Travancore (), also known as the kingdom of Thiruvithamkoor () or later as Travancore State, was a kingdom that lasted from until 1949. It was ruled by the Travancore Royal Family from Padmanabhapuram, and later Thiruvanan ...
. Its official gauge conversion started in 1998 and completed in 2018. On 31 March 2018, the entire Kollam–Sengottai line was opened for passenger train service. The first passenger train was the
Tambaram Tambaram is a city located within the Chennai Metropolitan Area in the Indian State of Tamil Nadu. The city is governed by Tambaram City Municipal Corporation. Etymology Tambaram is an ancient town referred to as Taamapuram in an inscrip ...
Kollam Kollam (;), is an ancient seaport and the List of cities and towns in Kerala, fourth largest city in the Indian state of Kerala. Located on the southern tip of the Malabar Coast of the Arabian Sea, the city is on the banks of Ashtamudi Lake ...
Tambaram Tambaram is a city located within the Chennai Metropolitan Area in the Indian State of Tamil Nadu. The city is governed by Tambaram City Municipal Corporation. Etymology Tambaram is an ancient town referred to as Taamapuram in an inscrip ...
special train (06027) that earned Rs 3.15 lakh by carrying 879 passengers against a capacity of 712. The line provides a shorter route to
Thiruvananthapuram Thiruvananthapuram ( ), also known as Trivandrum, is the Capital city, capital city of the Indian state of Kerala. As of 2011, the Thiruvananthapuram Municipal Corporation had a population of 957,730 over an area of 214.86 sq. km, making it the ...
via
Kollam Kollam (;), is an ancient seaport and the List of cities and towns in Kerala, fourth largest city in the Indian state of Kerala. Located on the southern tip of the Malabar Coast of the Arabian Sea, the city is on the banks of Ashtamudi Lake ...
. Other routes include:
Coimbatore Coimbatore (Tamil: kōyamputtūr, ), also known as Kovai (), is one of the major Metropolitan cities of India, metropolitan cities in the States and union territories of India, Indian state of Tamil Nadu. It is located on the banks of the Noyy ...
and
Pollachi Pollachi is a town and municipality in Coimbatore district of the Indian state of Tamil Nadu. It is the administrative headquarters of Pollachi taluk. It is situated near the center of the South Indian Peninsula, surrounded by Western Gha ...
to
Palakkad Palakkad (), Renaming of cities in India, also known as Palghat, historically known as Palakkattussery, is a city and a municipality in the States and union territories of India, Indian state of Kerala. It is the administrative headquarters of P ...
, from
Madurai Madurai ( , , ), formerly known as Madura, is a major city in the States and union territories of India, Indian state of Tamil Nadu. It is the cultural capital of Tamil Nadu and the administrative headquarters of Madurai District, which is ...
via
Kanyakumari Kanyakumari (Tamil; / kəɳjɑkʊmɑɾiː/; referring to Devi Kanya Kumari, officially known as Kanniyakumari, formerly known as Cape Comorin) is a town and a municipality in Kanyakumari district in the state of Tamil Nadu, India. It is the ...
. On 4 March 2019, railway started daily service between Kollam Junction and Chennai Egmore by extending Tambaram–Kollam tri-weekly special train to Chennai Egmore and increased the frequency as a daily service. The service was speeded-up by 35 minutes and the number of intermediate stops were reduced to 21 from 25 (Tiruttangal, Pamba Kovil Shandy, Bhagavathipuram, Auvaneeswaram are the four removed from the stoppage list). The daily express train service between Chennai Egmore and Kollam Junction via , and was one of the oldest routes in South India. The service was first flagged off by Travancore Maharajah Mulam Thirunal Rama Varma in 1904 as ''Quilon–Madras Mail''. The service was diverted through Virudhunagar and Manamadurai in 1996 due to gauge conversion works in Virudhunagar–Madurai stretch. Later, the service discontinued in 2000 for gauge conversion works.


Route

It runs along the British-made historic
Quilon Kollam (;), is an ancient seaport and the fourth largest city in the Indian state of Kerala. Located on the southern tip of the Malabar Coast of the Arabian Sea, the city is on the banks of Ashtamudi Lake and is 71 kilometers (44 mi) nort ...
Madras Chennai, also known as Madras ( its official name until 1996), is the capital and largest city of Tamil Nadu, the southernmost state of India. It is located on the Coromandel Coast of the Bay of Bengal. According to the 2011 Indian ce ...
rail route and other chord lines including Kollam–Sengottai which is the shortest existing rail route from
Chennai Chennai, also known as Madras (List of renamed places in India#Tamil Nadu, its official name until 1996), is the capital city, capital and List of cities in Tamil Nadu by population, largest city of Tamil Nadu, the southernmost states and ...
to
Kollam Kollam (;), is an ancient seaport and the List of cities and towns in Kerala, fourth largest city in the Indian state of Kerala. Located on the southern tip of the Malabar Coast of the Arabian Sea, the city is on the banks of Ashtamudi Lake ...
via
Chengalpattu Chengalpattu, previously known as Chingleput or Chengalpet, is a town and the headquarters of Chengalpattu district of the state Tamil Nadu, India. The town is located near to the industrial and IT hub. It is the headquarters of the district a ...
,
Dindigul Dindigul (ISO 15919, ISO: ) is a city in the India, Indian state of Tamil Nadu. It is the administrative headquarters of the Dindigul district. Dindigul City is Located in the Southwest Region of Tamil Nadu. Dindigul is an ancient settlement r ...
,
Trichy Tiruchirappalli (), also known as Trichy, is a major tier II city in the Indian state of Tamil Nadu and the administrative headquarters of Tiruchirappalli district. The city is credited with being the best livable and the cleanest city of T ...
,
Madurai Madurai ( , , ), formerly known as Madura, is a major city in the States and union territories of India, Indian state of Tamil Nadu. It is the cultural capital of Tamil Nadu and the administrative headquarters of Madurai District, which is ...
, Srivilliputtur,
Tenkasi Tenkasi () is a town and headquarters of the Tenkasi district in Indian state of Tamil Nadu.Tenkasi is the third largest city in tenkasi district after Kadayanallur and Sankarankovil. Being one of the most significant spiritual and cultural ...
and
Punalur Punalur is a municipality in the Kollam district of Kerala, India. It is the headquarters of the Punalur Taluk and Punalur Revenue Division. It is in the eastern part of the Kollam district of Kerala, on the banks of the Kallada River and footh ...
. Chennai Egmore→ → → → → Tiruchchirappalli Junction → → → → → →
Sankarankovil Sankarankovil is a Municipality Town in the Tenkasi district in the Indian state of Tamil Nadu, On the eastern slopes of Western Ghats. It was a demonym represents literally Sankara Narayana kovil because The Sankarankovil Town houses the fa ...
Kadayanallur → → → → → → → →Kollam Junction


Traction

As the route is fully electrified, an Arakkonam / Royapuram / Erode WAP-4 locomotive hauls the train from Kollam to Chennai Egmore and back. The first electric run of Quilon-Chennai mail in the recently electrified Kollam -Sengottai railway line was on 28th July 2024. The train boasts its legacy to run with coal powered steam engine locomotive, later with diesel locomotive ( first meter gauge then broad gauge ), and finally with electric locomotives.


Coach composition

The train has 17 bogies comprising one A/C two-tier, two A/C three-tier, ten sleeper class, two unreserved general coaches and 2 luggage rakes.The number of coaches got increased from 14 to 17 from April 9th 2024, subject to positive inspection report submitted by RDSO to Southern Railway for running 22 LHB/24 ICF coaches in the Ghats section. The number of coaches will be further increased in the next phase after the extension of platforms in stations along Kollam-Sengottai section to accommodate 24 coaches.


See also

* Anantapuri Express * Palaruvi Express * Silambu Express * Pothigai Express * Kollam–Sengottai Chord Line


Notes


References


Sources

*https://indiarailinfo.com/train/96239 *https://indiarailinfo.com/train/96242


External links


Southern India Railways - Official Website

Southern India Railway
{{DEFAULTSORT:Chennai Egmore-Kollam Junction Express Express trains in India Kollam–Chennai trains Rail transport in Kerala Rail transport in Tamil Nadu Railway services introduced in 2019