Tuck into local cuisine as you take a ride on the Neral-Matheran toy train

Enjoying piping hot delicacies as your train passes through a picturesque area – if that is your idea of a perfect trip, then you must head to Matheran, according to central railway.

To make the iconic Neral-Matheran toy train more tourist-friendly, the CR plans to convert one coach of the train into a restaurant that will serve local cuisine, on the lines of the toy train that runs between the hilly region of Kalka and Shimla. The CR also plans to plant trees to add to the scenic beauty of the 21-km stretch.

“We plan to model the train on the lines of the Kalka- Shimla toy train. One coach of the train will be turned into a restaurant. JJ School of Arts will be appointed as consultant for the project. We want the JJ team to see what can be adopted for our route,” said SK Jain, divisional railway manager, central railway.

The Kalka-Shimla toy train track was added to the list of world heritage site in July 2008. The 96.6-km narrow-gauge track passes through 102 tunnels and has 900 curves, which makes the view thrilling.

Twelve services of the train are operated daily on the route. “Officers from central railway had come to see the operation of the toy train. They studied different aspects from operations to maintenance of coaches,” said an official involved in the daily functioning of the Kalka-Shimla toy train, on condition of anonymity.

After being shut for a year owing to derailments, the Neral-Matheran stretch was re-opened last year.

The services were partially resumed on October 30 before they were rolled out fully on January 26.