The Grand Trunk Express, (commonly called G.T. or G.T. Express)(Tamil:கிரேண்டு டிரங்க் எக்ஸ்பிரஸ்,Telugu:గ్ర్యాండ్ ట్రంక్ ఎక్స్ప్రస్,Hindi/Marathi:ग्रैंड ट्रंक एक्स्प्रेस), is one of the oldest and most famous trains in India. When introduced in 1929, the train ran between Peshawar (today in Pakistan) and Mangalore, almost the length of the country and beyond. If fact, the GT was probably one of the longest running trains in the country at that time. The Peshawar to Mangalore run took about 104 hrs in all, later the end points were changed and to this day it provides a daily service between New Delhi, the capital of India, and the capital of Tamil Nadu, Chennai. It covers the distance of 2,186 kilometres (1,358 mi) in exactly 35 hrs 35 mins., with 38 halts (inclusive of the terminals). The train is one of the longest train routes in India.
The train passes through the states of Tamil Nadu, Andhra Pradesh, Maharashtra, Madhya Pradesh, Rajasthan, Uttar Pradesh, Haryana and Delhi.
As per the numbering of the Indian Railways, the train has been assigned the numbers 12615/12616, with 12615 being assigned for the Chennai - New Delhi run and 12616 for the New Delhi - Chennai run.
The normal composition of the GT is 24 coaches (cars) of the following classes ("AC" indicates air conditioned coach):
Sometimes an extra III tier sleeper coach is added to bring the total up to 25 coaches.
The GT is hauled for the entire route by a single WAP-4 AC electric locomotive from the Erode shed.
The train's name - and the name of the route on which it runs, the arterial North-South route, which is doubled and fully electrified, the Grand Trunk route—derives from the famous Grand Trunk Road. The GT is no longer the fastest or most prestigious train on the route. Presently there is also another train, the Tamil Nadu Express, which operates the same route, but is a bit faster as it has only 10 stops.
The GT, or Grand Trunk Express now runs between New Delhi railway station and Chennai Central with 34 intermediate stops, excluding the terminals. The Tamil Nadu Express runs on the same route with only 9 intermediate stops. Technically speaking, the Chennai Rajdhani Express between Hazrat Nizamuddin and Chennai Central shares the honour of being the fastest train on this route, taking 28 hours and 10 minutes to do the run, currently with 7 intermediate stops (to be increased to 9 with Tuglakabad and Balharshah added at a later date), along with the Chennai Garib Rath Express, with 9 intermediate stops and exactly the same duration between New Delhi and Chennai. The Tamil Nadu Sampark Kranti Express between Hazrat Nizamuddin and Madurai Junction travels between Hazrat Nizamuddin and Chennai Egmore in 34 hours and 50 minutes, with only 4 intermediate stops (the 5th stop at Chennai Beach station to be added later). The TN Sampark Kranti Express further continues on to Madurai.
There's another train called Himsagar Express, runs between Jammu Tawi & Kanyakumari covering almost 3715 km in 70 hours with 70 intermediate stations.