Travelling by train happens to be one of the most enjoyable travel options not only in India, but around the globe. Trains have been around for over more than a century and a half now, but the magic and the joy that train travel unfolds are all so inimitable. That is one of the many reasons why you will find that trains are as popular as a mode of transport worldwide. Even in India, millions of people prefer to travel by train since this is a cheap, as well as safe mode of travel across the very length and breadth of the country. From Kashmir in the north to Kanyakumari in the south and from Assam in the east to Rajasthan in the west, it is the Indian Railways that serve to tie the country in bonds of oneness amidst spectacular diversity.

Need to track train online:

Travelling by train means that you have to keep in mind the travel schedules and timings so that your journey may be actually enjoyable and comfortable. This is one of the prime reasons as to why there are many people who are on the lookout for information on how to track train running status because this is simply the single most important info that defines timeliness. In this day and age, people value their time and hence would want to keep updated on the running of trains so that they can plan to arrive at the station just in time for their train, without having to waste too much time in waiting.

Online tracking:

There are a variety of websites that provide you answers on how to check running train status. If you look at sites like indianrail.gov.in or travelkhana.com, you will be able to get correct and updated info on real-time basis. All you need to do is insert the PNR number of your ticket and the website returns info on the exact running status and position of the train. This is especially helpful to check out train schedules and exact time of arrival or departure station-wise. Those who want to board trains just in time can benefit from this online service. The ease of checking details is indicated by the fact that you can also type in a few characters of the train name and train number to get a minute by minute update of the coordinates of the train.

Manual Tracking:

One of the most time-tested ways of knowing where a train is the age old practice of calling up the railway station and then checking with the railway clerk or station information counter on the exact status of the train in question. This may be an age-old procedure, but it is quite accurate and you do get info from the station as to when the train is likely to arrive or depart as the case may be. This is quite adequate for those who many not really have access to more modern and contemporary information sources like internet connectivity.

Visual tracking:

With the advances of technology, it is now possible to have a visual or map-based tracking of trains. This is a brand new service called Rail Radar, which shows the real-time position of trains in India on a map. The map depicts each and every train in the country and its direction. You can click and zoom on specific trains and get information on where the train is at any given point in time. This is an amazing online service that makes accessing information not only easy, but also visually appealing and attractive. In addition to this, if you are still wondering as to how to track the train running status, all you need to do is access TrainEnquiry on Rail Radar and you would find out how easy the whole train tracking system actually is. This is made possible by the initiative of Indian Railways Centre for Railway Information System (CRIS) and the site railyatri.in. Advanced GPS technologies have made tracking of trains quite simple and this is a function of modern satellites and ground stations that help in up-linking and down-linking of data in real time.

These days people have no time to stand and stare due to the excessively fast pace of modern lifestyles. People want to know the exact location of the train they are to travel by, and with good reason.  There is no point in waiting for ages and this is where it becomes handy if you have the means of how to track a train in India. It always makes sense to make use of the latest technological devices, as well as online info to ensure that you are right on track when it comes to tracking trains. One need not be a connoisseur of trains or railway aficionado to want such timely information on trains.

Are you frustrated with the snail pace at which information on the position of trains is provided by Indian Railways? This is especially true of passengers wishing to disembark from trains, as well as those waiting on platforms to get on trains or want to receive certain passengers.

Now, Indian Railways cannot be fully to blame. It is one of the biggest and most complex rail networks in the world. 23 million passengers need to be ferried across over 7000 stations daily with clockwork precision in all corners of the country. This means there are inevitable delays, cancellations and rescheduling of trains.

Therefore, information on Indian railway live running status is vital for the general public as it saves them time and energy. The traditional method of train enquiry live status has been through the phone lines with numbers like 139, 131, etc. People using this facility were frustrated as these numbers would be busy at all times and difficult to get through.

But the best mode nowadays is through online sources and SMS. Some of the online sources of train details are as follows:

• com: This is the official website of the Indian railways. Train running status online live information is provided by this site. Train live running information is now available at the click of a mouse and in a user-friendly fashion. The Enhanced National Train Enquiry system has won a national award for providing useful information on Indian rail live running status.

A ‘spot your train’ facility is provided by this website. Log in and provide train number, journey / boarding/ arrival date and journey/ boarding/ arrival station.  You will get a comprehensive feedback on expected departure, queried station, current position, expected departure and last updated station.
Facility of ‘Live station update” requires you to key in details of stations to get name of the trains, type of train, time limit, etc.

Facility of “Train schedule,” which needs you to feed in the train number and get the feedback on, scheduled arrival, station, day, scheduled  departure, as well as distance between stops.
‘Trains rescheduled’ is a service where you provide start date and train number. You will get a list of rescheduled trains and train number, train name, source, destination, train type, etc. You can get a list of trains diverted and trains cancelled.

Nowadays, the service of travelenquiry.com is available on your Smartphone. The website is compatible with all smart phones and one can track train running status live.

• Rail radar: In October 2012, Indian railways launched ‘Rail radar’, a live train tracking system which runs on Google Maps. It is an improvement over earlier tracking system called as ‘spot your train.” The Rail Radar’s opening screen contains a map of India, which features details of all trains running. On the top right are indications of a number of trains tracked, as well as those running on time. One can zoom in or zoom out using the mouse or by selecting + or – buttons on the left side. The panel on the left has also facility to track specific trains. One can also search using stations. Trains running on time are depicted in blue and those running late are indicated in red. Clicking on a particular train will reveal its route, as well as current live status.

• E Train.info: Enter simple information like train name or train number to track live train running status. This will give feedback on route, as well as current train running status. Provide station name to track arrival to and departure from stations.

• IRCTC site: The Indian Railways Catering and Tourism Corporation provide a website that can track position of trains live as well as many other details that are useful for train travel. Get on to irctc.co.in. Enter details like destination (To and from). The site will immediately provide details of trains running between stations. Click on the train you need to track and get the correct position of that train. The website also provides details like last two stations crossed by the train and next two trains to reach, as well as the time taken for both.

• Travelkhana.com : This portal is primarily in the business of train food delivery but has now diversified into areas like ticket booking, checking set availability and live tracking of trains, etc. Live tracking of trains is useful for the website also as it has to coordinate the delivery of meals at various stations to reach it to the customer at his seat. A method for using the site is as follows: There is a box for keying in train name or train number, right at the top. Move on to a drop down menu that shows stations. Now you must choose either arrival or departure time. You will get the live status of the train and the location of the train on the map. It is also possible to auto-track the train. This useful service helps both passengers on trains, as well as those waiting to board. Those waiting to receive passengers also like this service as they can coordinate their timing with that of the actual arrival of the train. For information on trains or to place an order for food, one can log onto www.travelkhana.com. A Customer care executive will also respond to your queries and orders at helpline: 0-8800-31-31-31. This service is provided from 7 am to 10 pm. Food is delivered by cash on delivery and no extra charge. To track trains, one must provide train name, train number, PNR number and station name for a quick update on current position of trains. As information is regularly updated, you need to key in details every time you wish to refresh the information.

These are some of the ways by which modern technology helps in tracking trains on the humungous network of Indian Railways.

Tired of waiting for information on trains? Or travelling by train and tired of waiting for it to reach the next station?

Nowadays, you have varied choice for getting information on current location of train. Gone are the days of depending on phone lines and boards at stations to ascertain location of trains. Online tracking system and also SMS system of train tracking has made things much simpler.

Indian railways cart around 20 million passengers daily between 7000 stations. It is a humongous task to keep the network running with clockwork precision. Hence, there are inevitable delays, cancellations and diversions.

As such one waiting to board the train, or waiting inside train to get to a station or waiting to receive family or friends from trains will find useful the information on the current status of trains.

In 2011, the Indian Railways made efforts for a solution to this problem. It flagged of Rs110 crores system that is satellite based instead of manual tracking of trains to pinpoint train location of Indian Railways.  The Real Time Train Information System (RTIS) intends to give information on current train running information to the general public via SMS (mobile phones), Internet, call centers and train indication boards located at stations. It also aims to provide information for on-board passengers through display systems provided inside coaches.

The RTIS aims to replace the manual recording system that connects around 8000 trains across the 7000 stations across the country and to help tracking train location in India. Prior to RTIS, station masters called control rooms in the division headquarters to indicate that a particular train has passed his station. But this manual system was woefully inadequate.

The railways made efforts to set up loco devices in all locomotives as well as stations to get current movement data through satellites. Details of trains like speed, names, duration and all other relevant information were to be provided by system. The RTIS was first experimented on Rajdhani and Shatabdi trains and was quite successful.

This system developed by the collaboration of the RDSO with IIT Kanpur uses Global System (GS) and Global Positioning System (GPS) for mobile technology of communication to convey information.   The Railways has completed the digital mapping of most stations. The system also tracks freight trains.

The RTIS provided the first service for online train location tracking in India. Another advantage is the efficiency in running of trains because the movement data are made available to servers of Indian Railways. Information on real time basis about trains like speed, location, direction can be utilized to improve efficiency of trains in every section.

For linking various data of stations, signal information, yard details, city and infrastructure details like hospital details, digital maps can be used especially in times of emergency.

In March 2012, Indian Railways announced that it would soon start the real-time tracking of Indian trains on Google maps, which could be used through laptops and mobile devices. The technology arm of the Indian railways- Centre for Railway Information system (CRIS) in collaboration with the ISRO (Indian Space Research Organization ) developed a GPS-based solution that can provide the exact location of  a train on real time basis, which has an accuracy of ten meters and latency period of 2 minutes.

The GPS devices costing around Rs.1 lac per train was fitted first in 100 trains mainly to help in avoiding rail accidents and collisions. It will help trains assess each other’s location and divert before an accident. The breaking distance for freight trains is 1.4 km while for passenger trains is 1 km. The government was especially concerned about accidents. In recent times, over 15% of train accidents have taken place in India.

Passengers can also view real-time locations of their trains as CRIS has merged the GPS application with Google Maps. Insat-3C satellite of ISRO will help locate the position of moving trains. ISRO is aiming at reducing the accuracy of distance to 3 m as it is critical in avoiding accidents.

A successful GPS based system helps trains run at high speed. It also helps plan the transit of trains better in inclement weather. It replaced the manual system of train scheduling. Indian Railways have around 75 control offices for 7000 stations. The GPS system helps make things simple.

In October 2012, CRIS announced the setting up of the new RailRadar system. This is an application, which permits commuters to find the location of the train on a map and keep track of running train network in real time. RailRadar has been developed by the team of CRIS and RailYatri.in.

RailRadar features high functionality and user-friendly interface. Zoom in and Zoom out facility to get details of stations and trains available in this application. Customers can search for trains and station details and get specific details like current position of the train, its route and its stoppages. RailRadar also indicates details of late running trains and timely train schedules. RailRadar also communicates to the public unusual events like train cancellation, diversion or accident so that all can make efforts and plans accordingly.

RailRadar provides information on the status of trains by marking late trains with red color and timely trains in blue color on its map. Currently, it is configured to refresh/ update itself every 5 minutes.

The Indian Railways also set up a new version of its online service of trainenquiry.com, an application called as National Train Enquiry system, which offers live information on the several thousands of trains in our country.

Another source of information on current trains status is the IRCTC website. IRCTC stands for Indian Railways Catering and Tourism Corporation. One can track trains via IRCTC train location status. All you need to do is to log on to irctc.co.in and follow user-friendly guidelines.

Thus, modern technology has made tracking of trains exceedingly simpler than ever before.