Island Express (train)

Island Express (train)

The Island Express is an Indian Railways train running between Bangalore and Kanyakumari. Train# 16526 runs from Bangalore to Kanyakumari, and Train# 16525 runs in the reverse direction. The train runs daily via Coimbatore Junction, and covers the 944 km route in about 20 hours.

No part of the train's route is presently on an island; the name was given because the predecessor of this train used to end its journey at the Cochin Harbour Terminus station in Willingdon Island, Cochin till the mid 1970s. At that time, it was the only train that connected Bangalore (Karnataka state) to Kerala.

Later this train became Nagarcoil Express after the gauge conversion between Ernakulam and Trivandrum in the mid-1970s and a new Broad Gauge line to Nagercoil from Trivandrum was commissioned in 1979. Subsequently, it was extended to Kanniyakumari.

Island Express also experienced a horrible accident while on its way to Nagercoil in July 1988 when a large number of its coaches fell into the lake Ashtamudi Kayal while crossing the railway bridge. 105 people lost their lives (Peruman railway accident). It also met with another accident at Kuppam in May 1967. The train, which left Bangalore at 6 p.m., did not stop at the Railway Station and went on to hit the buffers at the end of the loop line around 9 p.m. Several lives were lost.

This is one of the worst trains to travel to Bangalore because of endless wait in outer bangalore(signal) due to infrastructure problems in bangalore railway station. This train stops at every station between bangalore and bangarapet leaving one wonder whether its a passenger. Off late the toilets are not maintained properly due to poor maintenance.