The Mumbai‑Bengaluru route will depart Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj Terminus at 20:10, arriving at Sir M Visvesvaraya Terminal 11:55 the next morning, covering 1,000 km in 15 h 45 m. The Varanasi‑New Delhi service will leave Varanasi at 20:50, hit Prayagraj by 22:35, Kanpur at 00:40, and reach Delhi at 05:55, a 9 h 05 m journey.
Both trains will run six days a week; the Delhi‑Varanasi service will skip Saturdays. With the trains cutting travel time by roughly six hours compared to current services, a Mumbai‑based IT executive said the extra time will free him to finish projects before midnight. A Varanasi pilgrim who usually takes a train to Delhi said the overnight option would let him rest before visiting the ghats in the morning.
Fares are priced at Rs 2.40 per passenger per kilometre for 3AC, making a 1,000‑km trip cost Rs 2,400 excluding GST. This rate sits at the lower end of international benchmarks, where comparable high‑speed services charge between Rs 7 and Rs 20 per kilometre.
The Indian Railways has announced that the final timetable will be released shortly; the new rakes will be assigned to these routes, and bookings will open a week before the inaugural run. The railways also clarified that the Vande Bharat Sleeper is a distinct category with no RAC provision, ensuring all passengers receive confirmed tickets once seats are available.