Mysuru: Prime Minister Narendra Modi will declare open the Mysuru-Bengaluru Railway Electrification Line later this month.

The PM, who is likely to launch the project after mid-January, is also expected to launch two trains — Mainline Electric Multiple Unit (MEMU) and Humsafar Express — between Mysuru and Bengaluru.

At present, 26 trains operating between Mysuru – Bengaluru daily carry some 30,000 passengers. Electrification is set to reduce travel time between the cities by 15 minutes, opening a window to ramp up rail traffic and extend existing routes.

Sources said the Railway authorities have zeroed in on Maharaja’s College Grounds for the launch of the project but the Prime Minister’s Office (PMO) is yet to confirm it.

Mysuru-Kodagu MP Pratap Simha told Star of Mysore that he has requested the PM to inaugurate the double line and electric train in Mysuru and also to lay the foundation for the expansion of Mysuru-Bengaluru Highway.

New Humsafar Express coaches arrived at KR Nagar Railway Station on Sunday. These coaches are likely to be used for long-distance routes. The Railway authorities are discussing whether Humsafar Express should operate from Mysuru to Delhi or to Thiruvananthapuram.

The MEMU train that runs from Bengaluru to Ramanagaram will be extended to Mysuru. Besides this, Humsafar Express will operate between Mysuru and Bengaluru.

Late last week, the authorities conducted MEMU train trial between Bengaluru and Mysuru, and the train did the run in two-and-a-half hours. Like  a passenger train, the 20-coach MEMU train will stop at all stations.