USB ports and chai-coffee vending machines: Enter the new AC 3-tier coach

Apart from making train travel safer, the Railways is now planning to enhance your journey with a major makeover that may make train travel more comfortable in the AC 3-tier coaches, according to an Indian Express report.

Here are some of the changes you will soon see in the AC 3-tier compartments:

1) The coaches will come with USB charging ports. Every cabin of eight berths will have six USB ports in addition to the existing two plug points.

2) Reading lights will be installed for every berth. Currently, only the 2-tier AC and 1st Class compartments get this privilege.

3) Accessing the upper berths will no longer be tedious, with more comfortable footrests on the ladders and additional handles to ease the climb.

4) The toilets will have additional urinals for men and foldable nappy changing tables for babies. The toilets will also have floors that don't get wet easily and graffiti-proof walls. The chained steel mug will also be replaced by a faucet.

5) If you want to know the exact location of the train and you don't own a smartphone, a GPS-enabled screen will also be installed in every coach to tell you the train's location.

6) No longer will you see the old and drab blue upholstery on your seats. Rather, you would be welcomed by a calming beige-cream grey seating.

7) The side lower seats will also have a small cushioned plank, which after lowering the backrests, have to be slided up to be placed on top of the joined backrests for it to form a flat berth.

8) The coaches will also have some modern amenities like a tea and coffee vending machine, smoke detectors and CCTV cameras.

This new coach design is awaiting the Railway Ministry's final nod, and should be unveiled later this month on the new Humsafar Express, which will only have AC-3 tier compartments.

These new coaches will cost Rs 2.7 crore each, Rs 20 lakh more than the AC tier-3 coaches currently in usage.

The AC 3-tier segment is currently the only passenger operation of the Railway Ministry that is profitable.