BEIJING: An Official Pakistan Railway has said that Train coaches, imported from China, are fully compatible with the local track, and have been approved for a commercial route after the initial trial at one of the fastest tracks in Pakistan. This was said by Muhammad Hanif Gul, divisional superintendent of Lahore Division at Pakistan Railways on Monday.
Talking to China’s state media he said that as a standard protocol to test any new induction in the railways before putting it into commercial operations, they did the same practice for the coaches, imported from China and the trial was successful.
“These are very good coaches with some new features, the ergonomics are up to the mark, technology is very good and when we use them in train services, people in Pakistan will have a very good experience,” he told Xinhua.
As part of the contract to acquire 230 coaches from China, the first batch of 46 coaches arrived last November in Pakistan, and are currently stationed in Lahore and are expected to begin operations in the coming weeks, he added.
Meanwhile Under the technology transfer agreement, rest of the coaches will be imported to Pakistan in the form of parts and will be manufactured in Pakistan with China’s technical assistance to boost Pakistan’s ability to produce trains independently.
Features of Coaches
Commenting over the quality of the new addition to Pakistan’s Railway from the perspective of passenger comfort, Gul said that they are very convenient with good seat space, corresponding to the anthropometric analysis of the population in Pakistan, and have an on-board washroom facility for mobility-impaired passengers, which is a new addition in Pakistan railways.
He further said that these coaches will be used as premier trains along with special staff and maintenance facilities, adding it will substantially boost the image of Pakistan Railways and will provide support and comfort to the passengers as to be another feather in the cap of the Pakistan-China collaboration.
To a question he said that the coaches imported from China have the capacity to run 160 km per hour, but they will operate these coaches at a speed of up to 120 km per hour until the planned upgradation work of the railway track is done.
Gul said that geographically Pakistan was an important place and through increased regional connectivity, the country has the potential to be a hub of transshipment and inter-regional trade.
