Stadler tests hydrogen trains on new narrow-gauge track
posted on 17th Oct 2026 12:16
Stadler has built a 950 mm gauge test track between Hemishofen and Ramsen in Switzerland. Starting mid-October 2026, this enables the manufacturer to efficiently test trains for Italian regional transport under real conditions to assess their performance and reliability. This will subsequently simplify commissioning of the rolling stock on their operating location.
Stadler built a dedicated narrow-gauge track in collaboration with Bahninfra AG and Müller Gleisbau. The track has been built in spring 2026 on the Etzwilen (Switzerland) - Singen (Germany) line, which is without regular passenger service, so it is now only a museum railway, and extends between Hemishofen and Ramsen stations. It is almost 4 km long and runs as a third rail within the existing standard-gauge track between the two stations. It is on this standard-track that Stadler’s FLIRT H2 hydrogen-powered train built for California completed its test runs. The idea of expanding the test track to include a narrow-gauge builds on this success.
The first vehicle to be tested there is the HMU for the Azienda Regionale Sarda Trasporti (ARST) in Sardinia. Alessio Salvatore, project manager of the hydrogen train, explains: “Following its arrival in Hemishofen, we are focusing on testing the hydrogen propulsion system. The train is being tested with varying levels of hydrogen in the tank and at different speeds. This will be followed by further tests relevant to type approval, including acceleration and braking behaviour. Every test successfully completed brings us one step closer to deploying the vehicle on the local route in Italy.”
There are currently two units on-site: the ARST trains SRHe 113.001 and 113.002. The latter was exhibited at InnoTrans. Over the next three years, the test track will play a key role in the commissioning of the HMU fleet that Stadler is manufacturing for the Italian regions of Sardinia, Calabria and Sicily. A total of currently 21 vehicles will be tested here.
