Credits & source for the video. The one in the video features Howrah - Anand Vihar Yuva express.
Intro(Long story, TL;DR at bottom)
A lot of unique trains get introduced which gives it a distinct identity as Rajdhani for its prestige, Shatabdi was its faster intercity journey & Duronto for its non-stop service. Yuva express was one of them too.
What tf is Yuva express?
Introduced in the year 2009 along with its sibling Duronto express, Yuva express was a unique concept when it came to affordability.
Introduced by former RM Mamata Banerjee during the rail-budget 2009-2010, Yuva express was started with an ambition to provide cheaper services for unemployed young people & passengers from lower-income groups who could travel between major cities without paying the higher fares commonly associated with air-conditioned long-distance services.
The term "Yuva" means "Youth" & since the target passenger for these trains were youth, hence the name Yuva.
The features:
The defining feature of this fully Air-conditioned train was the Yuva Quota. Initially, 60% of the accommodation was reserved for eligible Yuva(Youth) passengers, with the remaining 40% available to general passengers.
Eligible passengers aged 15-45 could take the benefits of Yuva Quota at specially reduced fares. IIRC, the fare up to 1,500 km was Rs. 299 per person while fare above 1,500 & up to 2,500 was Rs. 399 per person.
Initially, this train consisted of only Chair-car coaches. However, compared to standard ICF Chair-car, Yuva express Chair-car had more seats on any Chair-car train in IR's history with 103 seats(3x3 layout) which was higher than 73 seats of an ICF Chair-car & even higher than LHB/Vande Bharat's Chair-car's 78 seats.
Just like general coaches, Yuva express had 6 doors(3 doors on each side) due to the higher number of seats which means higher frequency of passengers so the additional doors were added for passenger convenience for getting in/out of the train.
The livery of this train was distinct from several other IR trains & it matched the scheme of Duronto a lot since both were started by the same person in the same year.
The total number of Yuva express trains.
The first Yuva train, connecting Howrah and Delhi, commenced service on 30 December 2009. A second service connecting Mumbai and Hazrat Nizamuddin followed in January 2010.
Unlike Duronto express which expanded further in the network of IR despite having its own flaws, only two Yuva express made it to the mainline.
The failures of Yuva express.
Despite the great ambitions & a cheap service for many passengers, Yuva express failed to match the expectations of many people for major reasons.
First was the underused Yuva Quota which was the crucial issue. Initially, 60% of the accommodation was allocated to eligible Yuva passengers. However, many reports stated that occupancy of special quota had fallen below 15%. In response to low demand, the Railways reduced the Yuva Quota from 60% to 20% in 2012, in just 3 years. At the end of 2013, the occupancy was again underused to the point that the Yuva Quota was reduced from 20 to 10%, meaning that 90% of passengers could afford it at normal fares.
The second major issue was the Chair-car seats for long-distance. Had it been like Intercity, it might've been a successful train however, for a train that goes from Delhi to Mumbai or Delhi to Howrah, Chair-car coaches are just nightmare because who could travel end to end by sitting. Many people already show frustration for Pune-Ajni(Nagpur) Vande Bharat being a long distance train with Chair-car seats so the preference for long distance Chair-car ain't a great option unless something like High-speed rail gets introduced which could cut several hours. That's why both Yuva got AC 3-tier coaches to cover up losses.
Another reason for what I could find was the strict eligibility criteria that you must prove you are an unemployed Youth at the age of 18-45 to travel in it & have produce official documents like a National Rural Employment Guarantee Act (NREGA) card or a State Employment Exchange registration certificate. Plus the Yuva Quota was very niche too which didn't appealed everyone.
Even if it had succeeded, the future problem may have been the cramped Chair-car coaches. As I've mentioned before, it had the highest number of Chair-car seats that a train could ever have. Tho it wasn't the major issue for its failure but it had less room for each passenger than in a conventional layout so just like Garib Rath's infamous Side-middle-Berth, Yuva express could've turned like Garib Rath only if it had succeeded.
The poor occupancy was also the reason why half of the coaches of Yuva express got replaced with conventional ICF premium AC 3-tier coaches.
The fate of these two Yuva express:
The first Yuva express was Howrah - Anand Vihar Yuva express but ironically, it was the first & only Yuva that was cancelled during COVID-19 & IR just never introduced it again. It had RSA with Howrah - Jalpaiguri AC express which also got permanently cancelled too.
The second Yuva express is Bandra - Hazrat Nizamuddin Yuva express which was the second Yuva express, it was the only Yuva express which survived & is still currently active today. During its final days as ICF, it only had a handful of Yuva express livered coaches with very few Red/Duronto coaches but it was heavily diluted with Ut****st coaches. It eventually got converted to LHB coaches with two blue LHB Chair-car coaches & the rest of them are typical red LHB 3-tier coaches which look pretty bizarre in appearance. It still retained the Yuva Quota even after many years.
Conclusion:
Yuva Express was an ambitious attempt to make AC travel affordable for young & lower-income passengers but low occupancy & limited appeal hindered its success.
Even if it had become commercially successful, its cramped seating might still have attracted criticism.
Ultimately, it remains an interesting experiment that struggled to balance affordability, passenger comfort, & demand.
TL;DR:
Introduced in 2009, Yuva Express aimed to make AC travel affordable for unemployed youth & lower-income passengers through specially reduced fares & a dedicated quota. However, low demand for the quota & the limitations of long-distance Chair Car travel hindered its success. Its unusually cramped seating could also have attracted criticism, much like Garib Rath's infamous side-middle berths. Of the two services introduced, Howrah - Anand Vihar was cancelled during the COVID-19 period & was never started again while Bandra Terminus - Hazrat Nizamuddin survived with red LHB(Plus 2 Chair-car LHB) coaches. Ultimately, Yuva Express was an ambitious experiment that struggled to balance affordability, passenger comfort & demand.
Apology for any mistake, have a nice day!
