What Are Slip Coaches in Indian Railways?

Indian Railways is adopting new and creative methods to make train services more efficient. One such unique concept is “Slip train” or “Slip coaches”. These coaches are instructed to finish their journey to the station before the rest of the train to its final destination. Indian railway officials prefer to use the more accurate term “partial carriage”. On Indian railways, carriages are left behind after being separated from the rest of the train. In India this is done only after the train has stopped; the vacuum and brake connections must be tested before the rest of the train can leave.  A transit coach is like a slip coach, except that it is then attached to another train after being disconnected from the first. Therefore, coach passengers do not have to change seats at their destination, even if there is no transit train on that line. Now simply check the running status of slip trains or popular connecting trains. You can understand the concept of the LMS slip trainer from the following image.

A: The Starting Station

B:  The Destination Station

C:  The Slip Source (the point where coaches are separated)

D: The Destination Station for Slip Coaches

You can imagine that a train goes from point A to point B with coaches. At some point C, some coaches from the train are detached and sent on the route C-D to another destination D. The detached coaches at C are called slip coaches and the route C-D is called a slip route. Sometimes point C becomes destination of some coaches and slip coaches continue to destination D.

Some Slip Trains or Link Express Trains in Indian Railways

1. One of the best examples to understand slipways is the Prashanti Nilayam Express train. The Kacheguda to Yesvantpur JN train schedule has a halt at Guntkal JN. There are some coaches left at that station that will be picked up by another train 17225 or 18047. Those trains will take those coaches along the slip route to either Hubli Junction in Karnataka or Vasco Da Gama in Goa.
2. In the picture below, the train starts from Manduadih in Varanasi and runs as 11108 (Varanasi – Gwalior Bundelkhand Express) to Mahoba Jn. At that junction, some carriages of that train are disconnected and connected to another engine. They are called sleds and they go to Khajuraho by train No. 21108 (Bundelkhand Link Express). Rest of the coaches move to Gwalior. The same thing happens on the way back when Mahoba Jn is added to train no 11107. Those coaches are from train no 21107 from Khajuraho.
3. Another example of slip coaches in India is 15014 Ranikhet Exp. cutting away It has 2 SL coaches and 1 AC-2T coaches which are Dehradun slip coaches. They were removed and attached to post 14265. Another Jammu Taw Slip Carriage (SL) was detached and attached to 13151 Express.
4. The very famous Howrah-Jodhpur Express is also a connecting express train. It runs as Howrah-Jodhpur Express (12307) from Howrah to Merta Rd Jn. That crossing is the source of the train derailment. Bikaner has few passengers so some coaches of Howrah-Jodhpur Express are detached and sent to Bikaner with another engine and driver (12307 sliptrain). The rest of the coaches continue to run to Jodhpur.

History of Slip Coaches

The concept of sleighs and sledges is not new but dates back to an earlier era. A long time ago in Great Britain it was a practice to separate coaches or coaches at certain stations by running without stopping (this was called coach slip). In such an operation, the sleigh coach had its own dedicated guard who led the squad and then slowed the coach as it moved at its own pace towards the station. This avoided delays in the main part of the train, which did not have to stop at the station. This practice continued for some time in the UK (until the 1960s) and slip coach usually refers to this practice in British terminology.  However, the Indian Railways coach ticket refers to coaches that are segregated even if they are not slip.

Frequently Asked Questions

1. What is a slip train in Indian Railways?

In infrared traffic, sometimes few coaches do not go to the final destination of the train to save cost and time. They are removed from the train and left behind. These coaches are called train coaches and can be taken by another train or be their last stop. A train with slip coaches is called a slip train.

2. Do I need to change coaches while travelling in a slip route train?

No, you do not need to change trains at any station. You will be placed in the appropriate coach at the time of the actual booking.

3. What is the difference between a slip coach and through coach?

A passing coach is similar to a slip coach but is then attached to another train to travel to a different destination. On the other hand, sleds can be forwarded after they are deleted.

4. What if I get a reserved ticket in one of the slip coaches when I had to go to the final destination?

This will not happen because the IRCTC reservation system is faulty. When booking, this ensures that the disabled coaches have no passengers to their final destination.

5. Is slip route applicable for General/Unreserved classes?

No, the slip route only applies to booked coaches or trains. The general/unreserved coach always runs from the starting station to the final station without leaving the coach anywhere. This is because in regular coaches it cannot separate passengers or force them to sit there.

6. How to identify which is a slip coach in a train?

There are usually guard coaches at both ends of the train. If you see a guard coach attached between other coaches, you can identify the slip carriages of the train. The rest of the guard tracks are the skating coaches towards the end. So, the next time you travel on these high-speed trains, don’t be confused and confused. Now that you know everything about Indian Railways coaches and express trains, share this information with your friends.