THIRUVANANTHAPURAM: As per the news, the Railway is all set to allow the second rake of Vande Bharat sleeper trains to Southern Railways. Union minister Ashwini Vaishnaw expressed high hopes about the country’s rail service soon espousing European standards.

There is high demand within the southern railways to allot the new Vande Bharat sleeper trains to the Thiruvananthapuram - Mangaluru route and also in the Chennai-Hyderabad route.

The demand comes in the wake of the high passenger traffic and acceptance received for Vande Bharat trains in Kerala. The two Vande Bharat trains in Kerala have been an instant success with a high occupancy rate. Even people booking tickets weeks before their travel have slim chances of getting through.

The weary night train travel on the Mangaluru Thiruvananthapuram is also the reason for the new demand. At present three trains are running from Mangalore to Thiruvananthapuram and vice versa. Maveli Express, Malabar Express and Trivandrum Express offer daily service. The situation is conducive to sanctioning a new train on this route and even railway officials would have no doubts about the success the new train would bring in this route.

The minister had earlier said that the ticket price of Vande Bharat Sleeper Edition will be affordable for common people.