Western Railway transports first lot of 125 Maruti cars from Detroj facility

Western Railway has entered into a partnership with Maruti Suzuki India to transport Maruti cars across India. This is the first major initiative of the railways to transport heavy vehicles and has transported the first lot of 125 cars from Detroj railway station in Gujarat. As part of the deal, Maruti cars manufactured from its plant in Gujarat will be transported to other parts of India via Western Railway with provision for future expansion.

The first train from Detroj with 125 cars produced by Maruti Suzuki in 25 NMG coaches left to Nidvanda in Bengaluru Division of South-Western Railway. According to Western Railways Chief Spokesperson Ravinder Bhakar, the total distance covered is 1m716 km and the entire consignment of 125 new vehicles was loaded in less than four hours.

Commenting on the development, Railway Minister Piyush Goyal disclosed that the new freight transportation initiative in association with Maruthi is a great initiative and will be a big boon for the Government run rail network. Goyal added that Indian Railways provides economical, safe, timely and eco-friendly transportation of goods between various locations. the network is capable of handling heavy automobile vehicles to Amul butter.

The partnership with railways will immensely benefit Maruti Suzuki’s new manufacturing facility near Becharji station in Patan district. The facility is designed in such a way to produce nearly 250,000 vehicles per year with scope for future expansion.

The overall stacking area in Detroj facility is around 8000 square meters. The Detroj railway station has been upgraded jointly by Railways and Maruti Suzuki. To facilitate the transportation business. Going forward, Indian Railways will also provide a facility to export vehicles via its exclusive logistic solutions. If the trend continues, we can soon expect Gujarat to be the major hub for car production.