Coalfield Express
 12340 Dhanbad - Howrah Coalfield Express (in its ICF avatar) skipping Chandanpur Railway Station with Howrah based WAP-4 electric locomotive | |
| Overview | |
|---|---|
| Service type | Superfast |
| Status | Active |
| Locale | West Bengal & Jharkhand |
| First service | 1 March 1955 |
| Current operator(s) | Eastern Railway |
| Route | |
| Termini | Howrah (HWH) Dhanbad (DHN) |
| Stops | 11 |
| Distance travelled | 259 km (161 mi) |
| Average journey time | 04 hours 35 minutes |
| Service frequency | Daily |
| Train number(s) | 12339 / 12340 |
| On-board services | |
| Class(es) | AC Chair Car, Non-AC Chair Car & General Unreserved |
| Seating arrangements | Yes |
| Sleeping arrangements | No |
| Catering facilities | On-board catering, E-catering |
| Observation facilities | Large windows |
| Baggage facilities | Available |
| Technical | |
| Rolling stock | LHB coach |
| Track gauge | 1,676 mm (5 ft 6 in) |
| Operating speed | 56 km/h (35 mph) avg 130 km/h (81 mph) max |
| Rake maintenance | Howrah Division, Eastern Railway |
12339 / 12340 Howrah – Dhanbad Coalfield Express is a daily superfast train that connects the major coal and industrial city of Dhanbad, Jharkhand with the adjoining coal and industrial cities of Asansol, RaniGanj, Andal, Waria, and Durgapur with the capital city of West Bengal, Kolkata. This train is also known as the twin / sister train of the Howrah – Dhanbad Black Diamond Express.[1] Initially running as 3029/3030, the train was converted to superfast on 3 June 2006, since when it has been running as 12339/12340.
Schedule
[edit]
12339 (HWH – DHN) departs from Howrah at 17:20 and arrives at Dhanbad at 21:55, while 12340 (DHN – HWH) departs from Dhanbad at 05:50 and arrives at Howrah at 10:25, thereby covering a distance of 259 km in 4 hours and 35 minutes, with an average speed of 56 km/h (35 mph) and maximum permissible speed of 130 km/h (81 mph) throughout the journey.
| HWH – DHN – HWH Coalfield Express | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 12339 | Stations | 12340 | ||
| Arrival | Departure | Arrival | Departure | |
| — | 17:20 | Howrah Junction | 10:25 | — |
| 19:08 | 19:09 | Mankar | 08:14 | 08:15 |
| 19:18 | 19:19 | Panagarh | 08:03 | 08:04 |
| 19:30 | 19:32 | Durgapur | 07:49 | 07:51 |
| 19:40 | 19:41 | Waria | 07:39 | 07:40 |
| 19:48 | 19:50 | Andal Junction | 07:28 | 07:30 |
| 20:01 | 20:03 | Raniganj | 07:19 | 07:20 |
| 20:18 | 20:21 | Asansol Junction | 07:00 | 07:03 |
| 20:34 | 20:35 | Sitarampur Junction | 06:44 | 06:45 |
| 20:43 | 20:44 | Kulti | 06:38 | 06:39 |
| 20:50 | 20:51 | Barakar | 06:33 | 06:34 |
| 20:57 | 20:58 | Kumardubi | 06:28 | 06:29 |
| 21:55 | — | Dhanbad Junction | — | 05:50 |
Coach composition and rake sharing
[edit]
The train consists of modern LHB coaches: two AC Chair Car coaches (C1 and C2), five Non-AC Chair Car coaches (D1 to D5), eight Unreserved General coaches (UR), one Ladies Unreserved General coach (LDS-UR) one Sitting cum Luggage Rake coach (SLR) and one End on Generation (EOG) / Power car.[2]
The train shares its rake with Shantiniketan Express and Agnibina Express.
Traction
[edit]
It is hauled by a Howrah-based WAP-7 electric locomotive on its entire journey.
References
[edit]- ^ Thakur, Jishnu. "12340/Coalfield Express - Dhanbad to Howrah ER/Eastern Zone - Railway Enquiry". indiarailinfo.com. Retrieved 21 April 2024.
- ^ Thakur, Jishnu. "12339/Coalfield Express - Howrah to Dhanbad ER/Eastern Zone - Railway Enquiry". indiarailinfo.com. Retrieved 21 April 2024.
