These vistadome coaches have been manufactured on the LHB platform/technology by Integral Coach Factory (ICF), Chennai.

Indian Railways introduces more vistadome coaches for passengers! Recently, two luxurious vistadome coaches have been introduced by the South Western Railway zone on day express trains, offering a 180-degree panoramic view of the scenic Western Ghats to travellers. South Western Railways’ CPRO, Aneesh Hegde was quoted in a PTI report saying this railway route traverses through the Western Ghats, specifically the Sakleshpur-Subrahmanya Ghat stretch. According to him, this rail section is scenic and offers breathtaking views of valleys, mountains, gorges and greenery. In monsoon, the region abounds with even more beautiful scenery, he further said.

According to Hegde, the train has two vistadome coaches with each of the coaches having a seating capacity of 44 people. The seats in these vistadome coaches are rotatable 180 degree whereas the large and wide windows will offer clear close-up view of the outside to travellers. These vistadome coaches have been manufactured on the LHB platform/technology by Integral Coach Factory (ICF), Chennai. There are glass rooftops in these coaches, which offer views of the sky. These rooftops have been provided with anti-glare screens too, the South Western Railway CPRO said.

The newly introduced vistadome coach is equipped with CCTV surveillance, LED display, fire safety systems, mobile charging socket on each seat, mini pantry, oven and refrigerator, multi-tiered steel luggage shelves, ‘content-on-demand’ viewable by passengers. Also, the vistadome coach is equipped with bio-toilets, automatic sliding doors and foldable snack tables, similar to that in aircraft. Besides, they have been equipped with a GPS-based public address system as well as Braille signage in order to assist visually challenged passengers. Also, space has been provided at the far end of the coach with a large viewing window, the CPRO added.

Last month, the national transporter, in a first, had restored the operations of Mumbai-Pune Deccan Express Special with an attached Vistadome coach. Some of the main features of this special train include rotatable seats for passengers, pushback chairs, glass roof top, wide window panes, etc.