2/2008

DB's ICE1 high speed train fleet has covered around 400 million kilometres - the equivalent of one return and one single trip between the earth and the sun - since entering service in 1991. By 2005 the time was approaching when mid-life refurbishment would become necessary, so that the trains would continue to meet passengers' changing expectations for comfort, on-board facilities and reliability over the coming ten to fifteen years. "Projekt Redesign" was the name DB gave to its massive programme to bring the popular and comfortable ICE1s up to date.

In November 2006 SNCF and STIF awarded Bombardier a framework contract worth 2.7 billion EUR for 372 dual-voltage, articulated, 140 km/h EMUs for use on local services within Ile-de-France (IDF). The new trains are inspired by the highly popular AGC design, and their brand name, Spacium 3.06, is a reference to their extra-wide bodyshells - all of 3,060 mm. As for the title of this feature, just take a look at the photo on the right!

Energy efficiency has become a key issue in public transport in view of climbing energy prices and concerns about climate change. The Vienna climatic wind tunnel of Rail Tec Arsenal, which is renowned for thermal comfort and functional tests on rail vehicles under extreme climatic conditions, has now analysed the energy saving potential for air conditioning systems - revealing that energy consumption can be reduced noticeably without compromising on comfort.

To complete the overview of current manufacturing activities at Bombardier's diverse railway works in Germany, here is a short report from Aachen.

As we reported in R 5/06, page 33, on 10 January 2006 the Portuguese state operator CP placed an order with Siemens for 15 mixed traffic Class LE 4700 ES46F1 Eurosprinters, thirteen months later taking up the option of ten more machines.

VNIKTI stands for Vserossiysky nauchno-issledovatelsky i konstruktorsko-tekhnologichesky institut podvizhnogo sostava, which translates as the All-Russian Rail Rolling Stock Scientific Research and Construction Technology Institute. This is the second largest R + D and testing establishment of its kind in Russia, and is situated in Kolomna, adjacent to its huge locomotive works, which we visited in R 5/07, pp. 50 - 53.

The commercial port of Mukran, situated just south of Sassnitz on the east coast of the island of Rügen, is the starting point for train ferry services to Sweden, the Baltic States, and Russia. At present, the routes to ports in the eastern Baltic are enjoying considerable expansion, thanks to the fact that the port has an extensive internal 1,520 mm gauge rail network.