The New Bangalore – Mangalore – Madgaon Vande Bharat Express

After more than a month of testing and deliberation, South Western Railway has finally released the proposed time table of the day time Vande Bharat Express (VBCC) between Bangalore and Mangalore. And yes, the speculations were correct. The train will continue on to Madgaon in Goa from Mangalore via the Konkan Railway. It also will not go to Mangalore Central but only up to Mangalore Jn. (Kankanadi) where it will reverse direction. It will leave from both Madgaon and Bangalore Yeshwantpur in the mornings to reach the other end at night and will run using two rakes. The existing 20645/20646 Mangalore Jn – Madgaon Vande Bharat Express which leaves Mangalore in the morning will now be discontinued and its rake utilised for this service. The proposed timetable and other details are given below.

PLEASE NOTE: This is only a tentative and proposed timetable. The official timetable or start of service have not been notified yet as of 03/11/2026. Please stand by for official announcements.

26655/26656 Bengaluru Yeshwantpur – Madgaon – Bangalore Yeshwantpur Vande Bharat Express via Mangaluru (SWR)

Divn: SBC | 16 coaches | Distance: TBD km | Halts: 12 | Time: 13h 20m | Avg Speed: TBD kph | No service: Wed/Thu

Abstract Schedule (Proposed)

• The 26655 Vande Bharat Express will leave from Bangalore Yeshwantpur YPR at 0745 in the morning six days a week (except Wednesdays) to arrive at Mangalore Jn MAJN at 1505 and from where it will leave at 1515 to reach Madgaon MAO Goa at 2055 at night.
• 26656 Vande Bharat Express will leave Madgaon MAO Goa at 0820 in the morning six days a week (except Thursday) to reach Mangalore Jn MAJN at 1350 in the afternoon from where it will leave at 1400 to arrive at Bangalore Yeshwantpur YPR at 2115 at night.

Stoppages: Sharavanabelagola, Hassan, Sakleshpur, Subrahmanya Road, Kabaka Puttur, Mangaluru Jn, Udupi, Kundapura, Mookambika Road Byndoor, Murdeshwar, Gokarna Road, Karwar.

Accommodation: 16-car Vande Bharat CC rake (02 Executive AC, 14 AC Chair Cars)

Detailed full timetable (Proposed)

Review of the Yeshwantpur – Madgaon Vande Bharat Express Timetable

It is no question that the Yeshwantpur-Madgaon Vande Bharat was primarily meant to cater to the Bangalore – Mangalore route but then was extended to elsewhere because they couldn’t find a way to return the rake to base the same day, and they do not have the space at Mangalore to keep it idle for the rest of the day. It takes 7 hours and 30 minutes between Bangalore and Mangalore, which is a good 2 hours faster than the other morning train on the route (Gomateshwara group) which it would be overtaking at around Kunigal or Yediyur. There is no doubt that it would be well patronised in this sector but the rest is suspect. In fact, this is the wrong train for this route.

This should’ve been a Vande Bharat Sleeper night train. There is no explanation or reason as to why this train should even exist. It could’ve left Yeshwantpur at around 1030 at night to arrive Mangalore at 8 in the morning, and depart from there to reach Madgaon at near 12. It could then leave at around 4 in the evening to reach Mangalore at 9 at night and then to back at Yeshwantpur at around 7 in the morning. This schedule would make absolute sense for both travellers between Mangalore and Bangalore, and for holidayers to Goa who would find the timings of the train to be perfect for hotel check-in and check-out. I doubt it that this train would find any takers at all between Mangalore and Madgaon. 80% of the train will empty out at Mangalore and the rest 10% at Udupi. A few might travel as far as Mookambika Road on a pilgrimage trip. That would be it. Absolutely no one would spend an entire day, which in this case means 13.5 hours travelling on a train to reach Goa from Bangalore when the very convenient overnight sleeper bus can take them there in just less than 10 hours at three-fourths the price. Nobody is going to waste an entire (or two) days of their precious leave to take this train to Goa from Bangalore.

Yes, there must be a Mangalore – Bangalore day time Vande Bharat Express (VBCC). It would need to run exclusively between the cities, it should start from Mangalore early in the morning and from Bangalore in the afternoon, and it should also reach Mangalore Central. It will be a super hit then. However, they would need to sort out the issue with the ghats before that can be achieved.

Like I had mentioned in an earlier post, the current Hassan – Mangalore railway line via the Shiradi Ghats is simply not sustainable. They need to either find a way to tunnel through the mountains or find an alternate route. At least doubling the line from Mangalore to Subrahmanya Road and from Sakleshpur to Hassan would definitely help. Otherwise even the Vande Bharat Express would only remain as an expensive showpiece as we have seen in several cases.