- The Union Railway Minister announced that the Mumbai-Pune high-speed rail will cut travel time to 48 minutes
- The corridor will support speeds up to 350 km/h, significantly faster than current trains, said the Minister
- Budget 2026 allocates Rs 2.78 lakh crore for Railways, including seven new high-speed corridors
Union Railway Minister Ashwini Vaishnaw has said that a proposed high-speed rail corridor between Mumbai and Pune could reduce travel time between the two cities to around 48 minutes, as per reports. This is significantly shorter than the current journey, which typically takes three to four hours by conventional rail. The Minister claimed that the new infrastructure will accommodate speeds of up to 350 km/h. These statements come amid a series of railway announcements made as part of the Union Budget 2026, which places a strong emphasis on capital investment, new corridors, and faster rail connectivity between major urban centres.
According to Vaishnaw, the Mumbai-Pune proposal envisages a dedicated high-speed rail line, similar in concept to other bullet train corridors currently under planning or construction in the country. While project timelines and alignments have not yet been finalised, the corridor has been identified as one of the key routes under consideration for high-speed travel.
Why The Mumbai-Pune Route Matters
The Mumbai-Pune connection is among India's busiest short-distance intercity routes, serving a mix of daily commuters, business travellers, students, and leisure travellers. The corridor also functions as an important access route to the Western Ghats region and to hill destinations. Mumbai's role as a major international aviation hub further adds to the volume of travel between the two cities, with Pune often serving as a secondary destination for passengers arriving in Mumbai.
A reduction in travel time to under an hour could alter how the route is used, enabling same-day return trips and tighter scheduling for business and short leisure travel, although officials have not outlined operational details or service frequency at this stage.
How This Fits Into Budget 2026 Railway Plans
The proposed Mumbai-Pune high-speed rail corridor is part of a broader rail push announced in the Budget 2026. Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman announced budgetary support of Rs 2.78 lakh crore for the Railways, with total capital expenditure pegged at Rs 2.93 lakh crore. The Budget also proposed seven high-speed rail corridors connecting major cities, along with a new East-West Dedicated Freight Corridor between Dankuni in West Bengal and Surat in Gujarat.
Vaishnaw said the allocations made in this year's Budget are intended both to complete pending railway projects and to take up new works across states. Maharashtra, where the Mumbai-Pune corridor would be located, has been allocated Rs 24,000 crore under the capital expenditure outlay. The minister said similar allocations have been made across other states, including Uttar Pradesh, Rajasthan, Madhya Pradesh and Chhattisgarh.
In addition to the Mumbai-Pune corridor, the minister referred to other proposed high-speed routes such as Pune-Hyderabad, Delhi-Varanasi and Varanasi-Siliguri, which he said would link major economic and population centres. The Budget also reiterated plans for station redevelopment under the Amrit Bharat Station Scheme and the introduction of Amrit Bharat trains on select routes.
Together, these announcements signal a renewed focus on faster intercity rail travel as part of India's wider railway investment programme, with the Mumbai-Pune proposal emerging as one of the most closely watched projects due to the high volume of travel between the two cities.
