In three years, Vande Bharat Express's average speed decreased from 84 mph to 76 mph. RTI

In answer to an RTI request, the railway ministry stated that the average speed of Vande Bharat trains dropped from 84.48 kmph in 2020–21 to 76.25 kmph in 2023–24.
According to railway officials, where "huge infrastructural work" is taking place, not only the Vande Bharats but also a large number of other trains are traveling at a cautious pace. "Besides this, some Vande Bharat trains have been launched in difficult terrain areas where there are speed restrictions due to geographical reasons or extreme weather conditions," said a railway official.

An official from the Central Railway Zone stated, "Most of the Konkan railway area is 'ghat' section where trains pass through low height mountain ranges," using the Vande Bharat train as an example between Mumbai CSMT and Madgaon. It's a rough terrain location where going faster could put your safety in danger." "Things become very challenging during the monsoon season when we have to keep the maximum speed for all trains at 75 kmph," he stated.

"The data, obtained through the RTI, shows that the average speed of Vande Bharat trains was 84.48 in 2020-21, which decreased to 81.38 kmph in 2022–23," stated Chandra Shekhar Gaur, an RTI applicant from Madhya Pradesh. It declined even more in 2023–2024, reaching 76.25."

The Vande Bharat is a semi-high speed train that was introduced on February 15, 2019, and its top speed is 160 kmph. However, due to improper track conditions, it is only able to reach speeds of up to 130 kmph throughout the nation, namely on the Delhi-Agra line.

Some of the tracks between Delhi and Agra were built in 2016 so that the Gatiman Express, India's first semi-high speed train, could travel at 160 kmph. The Vande Bharat only travels at 160 kmph on such sections. Its top speed in the remaining locations is either 130 mph or lower," a second railway official stated.

According to him, the railways have been modernizing its lines to satisfy the Vande Bharat's speed requirements, and "it is because of these reasons there are cautions at various places". "Once these upgrades are over, we will have trains which will go up to 250 kmph," the official said.

Some of the routes where the Vande Bharat travels slower than average include Patna-Ranchi (62.9 kmph), Dehradun-Anand Vihar (63.42 kmph), and Coimbatore-Bangalore Cantt (58.11 kmph).