Clockwise from top left: A Vande Bharat train-set; a WAP-7 electric locomotive; a metro train and a suburban train
Operation
National railway
Indian Railways
System length
Total
Route: 68,907 km (42,817 mi)
Regular/suburban: 68,012 km (42,261 mi)[1]
Metro: 895 km (556 mi)[2]
Double track
38,415 km (23,870 mi) (2023)[1][2]
Electrified
61,315 km (38,099 mi)[3][2]
Track gauge
1,676 mm (5 ft 6 in) broad gauge
65,241 km (40,539 mi)[1][4]
1,435 mm (4 ft 8+1⁄2 in) standard gauge
245 km (152 mi)[2][4]
1,000 mm (3 ft 3+3⁄8 in) metre gauge
1,655 km (1,028 mi)[1]
762 mm (2 ft 6 in) and 610 mm (2 ft)
1,294 km (804 mi)[1]
Features
Longest tunnel
Pir Panjal Railway Tunnel, 11.215 km (6.969 mi)
No. bridges
156,417 (2022)[1]
Longest bridge
Bogibeel Bridge, 4.94 km (3.07 mi)[5]
No. stations
Total: 8016
Regular/Suburban: 6268[1]
Metro: 748
Highest elevation
2,257 m (7,405 ft)
at
Ghum
Lowest elevation
3 m (10 ft)
at
Burra Bazar and Honnavar
Rail transport in India consists of primarily of passenger and freight shipments along an integrated rail network. Indian Railways (IR), a statutory body under the ownership of the Ministry of Railways of the Government of India, operates India's national railway system. It is the primary owner and operator of rail operations throughout the country including suburban rail in major metros.
Majority of the metro urban rail networks are operated by independent bodies constituted for the purpose of the respective operations. Private owned rails exist in few places, mostly used to connect freight to the integrated rail network. Inter-city rail services are operated primarily by Indian Railways though efforts have been made to introduce privately operated trains as recently as 2022.
The national rail network comprised total route length of 68,907 km (42,817 mi), with more than 129,000 km (80,000 mi) of track and 8,000+ stations and is the fourth-largest in the world. It is one of the busiest networks in the world, transporting more than 11 billion passengers and 1.416 billion tonnes of freight annually. As of October 2023, more than 60,813 km (37,787 mi) of all the routes have been electrified with 25 KV AC electric traction. The rolling stock consisted of 318,196 freight wagons, 84,863 passenger coaches, 14,781 locomotives and other multiple units owned by Indian Railways apart from rail-sets operated by metro rail corporations.
Studies by economic historians have identified substantially beneficial economic effects from the Indian railway network.[6][7]
^ abcdefgIndian Railways Year Book 2021–22 (PDF) (Report). Indian Railways. Retrieved 1 December 2023.
^ abcd"One crore passengers riding metro systems per day in India: Hardeep Singh Puri". The Times of India. 27 October 2023. ISSN 0971-8257. Retrieved 3 November 2023.
^Railway Electrification till October 2023 (PDF) (Report). Indian Railways. Retrieved 1 December 2023.
^ ab"Delhi Metro begins to shift to standard gauge". The Times of India. 27 March 2009. Retrieved 1 December 2023.
^"A bridge over Vembanad Lake". The Hindu. 12 July 2010. Archived from the original on 11 July 2020. Retrieved 11 February 2017.
^Bogart, Dan; Chaudhary, Latika; Herranz‐Loncán, Alfonso (2024). "The growth contribution of colonial Indian railways in comparative perspective". The Economic History Review. doi:10.1111/ehr.13341. ISSN 0013-0117.
^Donaldson, Dave (2018). "Railroads of the Raj: Estimating the Impact of Transportation Infrastructure". American Economic Review. 108 (4–5): 899–934. doi:10.1257/aer.20101199. ISSN 0002-8282.
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