RegioSprinter
RegioSprinter | |
---|---|
Electromagnetic rail brake | |
Track gauge | 1,435 mm (4 ft 8+1⁄2 in) |
The RegioSprinter is a German diesel railcar built by Siemens-Duewag for rapid regional railway services. Originally the RegioSprinter was designated as a Regional Combustion-engined Railbus (Regional-Verbrennungstriebwagen or RVT) by Duewag.
Developed as prototypes for fast regional railway services on the plains, the RegioSprinter still has the fastest acceleration of any multiple unit or railbus in Germany. Due to several technical and conceptual defects, however, only very few were built. Based on their experience with the Regiosprinter Siemens developed its successor, the Desiro, which was initially marketed as the Regiosprinter 2.
In 1999, all the
Design
The vehicles are designed with three sections. In the two, single-axled end modules are the driver's cabs and the drive units like those on trams. In the middle is a twin-axled, unmotored module.
Two thirds of the vehicle has a low floor. The seats are arranged in a 2+3 configuration, there is no toilet due to the short journey distances envisaged. Late the Vogtlandbahn had to fit all its vehicles with toilets, because otherwise cross-border services to the
Operations
Rurtalbahn
In 1995 the
- Southern Rurtalbahn: Heimbach
- Northern Rurtalbahn: Düren – Jülich – Linnich (from Jülich part of the Jülich–Dalheim railway)
- Börde railway: Düren – Zülpich – Euskirchen (exclusively tourist traffic at weekends)
Under contract to
Because the vehicle fleet of the Rur Valley railway has a large reserve, in past years RegioSprinters from this company have helped out on other private railways, for example on the
Vogtlandbahn
From 1996 the
- dolní n.) (KBS 539)
- Adorf/Vogtl.(KBS 544)
- Adorf (Vogtl)
Until the timetable change in December 2006 the Vogtlandbahn's RegioSprinters were also on duty on the VB 7 line between Schönberg/Vogtland and Schleiz West. Services on this route were withdrawn on 9 December 2006 by the local public transport company of the free state of Thuringia.
Moreover, in 2006 two of the railbuses (VT 36 and VT 39) were hired to the
Nærumbanen (Denmark)
In 1999 the
Since 2002 operations have been run by Lokalbanen A/S (LB), which took over several smaller railway companies in the Copenhagen area. The railbuses were owned at the time by the Hovedstadens Lokalbaner, which hired them to the LB.
GW Train Regio (Czechia)
Since 2016, 15 units were purchased and operated by a Czech private operator
. It seems to be the biggest fleet of Regiosprinters at the moment.One unit was damaged beyond repair after the frontal crash with another train (former DB 628 unit) on May 3, 2018. While the 628 unit was returned to the service, the Regiosprinter was left to be used for spare parts and another unit was from bought from Rurtalbahn, sent for the same upgrade as previous units to refill the fleet.
Calgary Transit
From April to August 1996
References
- ^ Siemens launches low-cost DMU Modern Railways issue 560 May 1995 page 298
- ^ RegioSprinter demonstration under way Railway Age May 1996 page 30
- ^ RegioSprinter: A different kind of LRV Railway Age April 1997 page 78
- ^ RegioSprinter in the Gulf Modern Railways issue 595 April 1998 page 219
External links
Media related to RegioSprinter at Wikimedia Commons
- Photo gallery at Paul-Zimmer.de
- Photo gallery on the European Railway Server
- Reisebericht: Cross-border railway experiences in the Vogtland
- CZ: Konec vlaků bez toalety. GW Train ukázal novou soupravu pro lokálky
- CZ: NĚMECKÁ VOZIDLA NA ČESKÝCH KOLEJÍCH – ŘADA 654
- CZ: GW Train has lost two trains in the crash between Křemže and Boršov