Train of the Week

Fast train talk again this week. The Talgo 250 (comes under 2 classes under Spanish national passenger train operator Renfe, S130 and S730), as the name suggests, is a push-pull tilting trainset capable of 250 km/h or 155 mph in service. The special thing about this high-speed trainset though, is that she has an integrated gage changing system that works on the move at slow speed. Although we never need such a system, this is big in countries that traditionally have a different track gage until they adopt the standard gage high-speed rail (56.5 inches or 1 435 mm for the record). Spain’s existing rail network uses what’s called the Iberian gage, 65-21/32 inches or 1 668 mm. Being a push-pull, the Talgo 250 has locomotives of course. They are 4-axle units with AC traction motors pumping out 3 200 hp on high-speed lines and 2 700 hp on existing lines (in this case, speed is reduced to a max of 135 mph in service). The locomotives are made in Germany by Bombardier. Some trainset h...

The Kiha E200 a hybrid diesel-electric railcar operated by the East Japan Railway Company since 2007 on its existing narrow gauge (1067 mm or 3 and a half feet) railway network. It is based on the NE Train , an experimental hybrid railcar, developed by Tōkyū Car Corp. Lithium-ion batteries are fitted to the railcar to store electricity generated by regenerative braking and is used to start the railcar from standstill. A total of 3 Kiha E200 are built and can be used in multiple-unit operation. The output of a single railcar is 331 kW (444 hp) and has a top speed of 100 km/h (62 mph).

The train of this week is a locomotive unveiled in 2009 by the BNSF Railway.  Instead of using conventional diesel fuel, it is powered by hydrogen fuel cells  (I have very limited knowledge in this area, so please feel free to comment on this post if you are interested in and familiar with the topic of hydrogen fuel cells).  It is called the HH20B, a hydrogen-hybrid switcher locmotive based on the GG20B Green Goat diesel-hybrid switcher built by Railpower Technologies Corp. of Brossard, Quebec (acquired by R.J. Corman Railroad Group of Nicholasville, Kentucky in 2009).  The GG20B is powered by a 300 hp 4-stroke Caterpillar diesel-engine and a battery pack with a combined tractive output of 2,000 hp.  On the HH20B, diesel engine is replaced by hydrogen fuel cells.  Hydrogen storage is in a set of tanks installed on top of the long hood of the locomotive in a heavily vented enclosure, above the batteries. The BNSF Railway displaying its low- and ul...