Photo: SBBThe
www.sbb.ch/en Swiss Federal Railway (SBB) is ordering a further 60 InterRegio double-deck trains from
Stadler in a contract worth about CHF 1.3 billion (SBB is exercising an existing option to procure the 60 new trains).
By procuring 60 InterRegio double-deck trains (IR double-decker), SBB is strengthening its existing fleet with a tried-and-tested vehicle type; 41 of the trains will help to replace the old fleet and to fulfil the requirements of the Disability Discrimination Act (DDA) on long-distance services.
This includes the requirement for barrier-free boarding of trains for persons with reduced mobility by the end of 2023.
Meanwhile, 19 of the vehicles will also be used to reduce ‘capacity bottlenecks’ for regional services in the Zurich region and the French-speaking part of Switzerland (the first vehicles will be in use in 2024). SBB already operates 93 IR and RE double-deck trains.
In addition, Stadler has successfully completed the research project launched in 2018 to develop and test battery technologies in the railway vehicle sector after a three-year research phase. The project was funded by the German Federal Ministry for Economic Affairs and Energy and developed jointly with TU Berlin and EWE AG.
The vehicle, designed as a test carrier, ‘far exceeded initial expectations’ during the three-year trial phase with a proven range in battery-only mode of 185km.
Some 54% of the European rail network has an overhead line. In Germany, the figure is currently around 60%, with 70% of lines to be electrified by 2025. For the remaining lines, the use of ‘emission-free’ railway vehicles is a fundamental building block for achieving the EU climate targets.
Since its unveiling in the autumn of 2018, the vehicle (it is fully approved for passenger operation), has covered 15,000km in battery-only mode. The project team placed particular emphasis on testing (in passenger service) a range of possible scenarios, such as making up for unplanned delays on the line and operation in extreme weather conditions to test the response of the batteries.