Nearly 3.98 crore passengers travelled on Vande Bharat Express trains during the 2025-26 financial year, representing a significant increase in passenger usage on the network. This reflects a year-on-year growth of almost 34% compared to the 2.97 crore passengers who travelled in the 2024-25 financial year. The Ministry of Railways stated that this growth highlights the increasing preference for fast, comfortable, and modern rail travel among passengers across the country. It also added that the Vande Bharat Express has carried over 9.1 crore passengers through over one lakh trips since its introduction.
The Vande Bharat Express, India's first domestically designed and manufactured semi-high-speed train, was launched on the New Delhi-Varanasi route in February 2019. The New Delhi-Varanasi route remains the busiest, having recorded over 73 lakh passengers so far. Further strengthening long-distance connectivity, Indian Railways introduced the Vande Bharat Sleeper service in January 2026. It has carried over 1.21 lakh passengers across 119 trips, achieving an occupancy rate of over 100% in just the first three months of operation.
