Americans know a lot about car and airplane manufacturers–but very few are familiar with the train making industry and it’s biggest players. That may change over the coming years, if the US gets serious about improving and expanding passenger rail service and the $180 billion global rail industry continues to boom. For the next two weeks, the Infrastructurist will be running a six-part series introducing the companies that are building the 21st century fast trains that may one day be running between major US cities.
Meet Alstom
France’s TGV was the first high-speed rail network in the Western world. Because of that, many people in the North America and even Europe have thought of it as emblematic of fast trains generally. This fact has benefitted the TGV’s primary train manufacturer, Alstom, whose engineers played the primary role in developing the TGV equipment. Today, the company is the number one producer of high-speed trains in the world, and holds the record for fastest-ever wheel-on-rail train trip.
History
Formed in 1928, Alstom was the product of the merger of two industrial groups. With the 1932 acquisition of Constructions Electriques de France, it became involved in train manufacturing, but it made few advances in high-speed rail until the 1960s.
TGV 001 - pic via
In 1964, Japan began running trains at 125 mph between Tokyo and Osaka. Inspired, the French national rail company SNCF created a research and development department to investigate how to speed up its own services. Working directly with Alstom, it built an experimental gas-powered turbo train labeled TGV 001. It was a radical departure from contemporary vehicles, offering technological improvements in braking, aerodynamics, and traction. Most importantly, unlike any other existing train, it was articulated with the bogies (the wheel sets) placed between rail cars, rather than under each car. This ensured more stability at speeds reaching 200 mph.
The oil crisis of the 1970s put a brake on any plans for a gas-driven train, so the French national company instructed Alstom to switch to an electric-powered design. The first passenger-ready TGV was delivered in 1980. The next year, SNCF tested a train on the brand-new track between Paris and Lyon at 236 mph, besting all previous rail speed records; TGV service opened for passengers soon after.
In the 30 intervening years, Alstom’s technology has proven its reliability, with no fatal accidents yet recorded despite more than 1.5 billion passengers carried. Moving at high speeds throughout the country has convinced many people to drop their cars and get out of planes, so the trainsets have been enormously profitable for SNCF.
Today
These successes as well as national loyalties have served Alstom well as the French government has spent billions of euros expanding its high-speed rail network. SNCF now owns the world’s largest fleet of fast trains, with more than 400, and they’re all TGVs made by Alstom. The vehicles have advanced considerably since 1981, now including a postal variant and a double-decker option. In 2007, Alstom managed to speed a modified “V150″ TGV to 357 mph down a new section of track between Paris and Germany.
V150 - pic via
Impressed by the company’s prowess, Great Britain, the Netherlands, Spain, and South Korea have chosen to outfit their rail fleets with TGVs. Plans are on the books for new systems in Argentina and Morocco.
Despite that impressive record, however, Alstom has been unable to expand the reach of the TGV to some of the world’s biggest new markets, including China and Russia, where competitors Bombardier and Siemens have recently secured lucrative contracts. Alstom’s purchase of the Italian Pendolino tilting train technology in 2000 delivered few new purchases. In 2004, because of problems in its other business sectors, Alstom had to be bailed out by the French government, which took a temporary 21% stake in the company. SNCF, the national rail company, even suggested it might choose trains from another manufacturer if Alstom didn’t provide substantial upgrades to the TGV, whose base components were now decades old.
Eurostar train - pic via
But the company has a comeback strategy. Last year, it revealed its new AGV train (photo at top), which will replace the TGV and be able to attain safe operational speeds of 225 mph, compared to 200 mph today. It will have a higher capacity than the existing model because engines will be distributed above each bogie, not simply placed at the front and back, opening up more room for passengers. Energy consumption per seat will be roughly 30% lower than that of the TGV.
The investment in the new technology paid off quickly: Alstom received an order for 25 of the trains, to be completed by 2011, from new Italian operator NTV.
In the United States, Alstom was involved in the Amtrak Acela Express project, which sped up travel times slightly between Boston and Washington. Problems with the implementation of the service may put a dent in any attempt by Alstom to secure some of the U.S. market, but the company’s record of reliability in France and the new technology it offers in the AGV may simply be too good to resist.
TGV at Paris’s Gare de Lyon - via
AGV - via
October 26th, 2009 at 11:41 am
Notice that some of these trains are double decker. Twice the passengers for almost the same operating cost!
While the Acela train order left a sour taste, I wonder if it’s Alstom or Bombardier who gets the black eye for that? Conversations I’ve had suggest it’s Bombardier who’s reputation got damaged. (And some versions of the story suggest the problems came from Amtrak.) Of course reputation and truth are not necessarily the same thing.
October 26th, 2009 at 11:47 am
“Most importantly, unlike any other existing train”
Not entirely true. Several of the American “Flyer” series of lightweight trains used Jacobs bogies. But most had been retired by the time the TGV was developed, and Budd certainly wasn’t making new ones.
October 26th, 2009 at 1:28 pm
@Parker: because of stairs and whatnot, it’s typically only about 40-50% more passengers, but yes, duplex trains are typically more energy efficient per-passenger mile and more operationally efficient.
Alstom has hinted that a duplex AGV is on the way, but they haven’t released any details or timelines.
October 26th, 2009 at 4:50 pm
Looking forward to the rest of the piece JR!
When it comes to Acela, Congress and the FRA get the black eye. The designers had virtually nothing to work with. Its a feat that Acela gets up to 150 mph, considering it is designed like a freight train to withstand a wreck with a freight train because tracks are shared and god forbid anybody using 21st century train control and signaling systems.
The whole rail industry over here needs a colossal make over. They need a definitive plan of action and it needs to be executed. Its really that simple. If Congress doesn’t have a clue, well the rest of the world does, ask them to do it, they will be more than happy too.
Look at the plan SNCF has for the US HSR systems. Now there’s something, the Company that has run the TGV for 30 years and made it profitable wants to come here and do the same thing here….Oh but wait its FRENCH and EUROPEAN and they’re SOCIALIST. I had this argument this weekend and those were the reasons I was given as to why its a bad idea, nothing else just those three things.
October 26th, 2009 at 6:17 pm
“Notice that some of these trains are double decker. Twice the passengers for almost the same operating cost!”
We already have a bunch of double-decker trains in New Jersey, Long Island, California, and Chicago. Unfortunately the double-deckers cannot be used on the busiest (and oldest) areas of the American system (Hudson River tunnels and East River tunnels to Penn Station, entire New Haven Line) because of clearance problems with tunnels, bridges, and catenary wires.
I do wonder if the California HSR program and other potential HSR networks throughout the country have studied the feasibility of double decker trains in their construction plans.
October 26th, 2009 at 6:52 pm
The double decker trains on the TGV are pretty much the same height as the Locomotive that pulls them. The lower level has been dropped between the bogeys closer to the track and the roof raised to a level slightly above the Locomotive’s height, So you step into the train at platform level and go either downstairs or upstairs. So there isn’t a need for any infrastructure modifications to accommodate the new Rolling stock.
The same system can be designed for the Acela and Cal-HSR (if they haven’t already thought of it) if it was needed without problems.
October 26th, 2009 at 9:39 pm
While double deckers are efficient designs, they are not necessarily the best option in all cases. In HSR, they are typically utilized in cases where line capacity has reached its limit, and no additional single deck trains can be added. A starter line like California’s probably would be adequately served by 10 or 12 car long single deck trainsets. The benefit of single deck trains is that they are slightly faster and don’t have stairs, so the mobility impaired benefit.
October 27th, 2009 at 4:12 am
I look forward to the other posts in the series.
I love the Alstom double decker TGV (Duplex) - the design is very cool.
Perhaps at the end of each post, you can list the manufacturer’s current production models.
Andrew in Ezo is right about using double deck on the at-capacity lines: The TGV Duplex was first used on the Sud-Est line from Paris to Lyon, which has always been the busiest line.
October 27th, 2009 at 4:25 am
@Andrew
I think you’re mistaken about the single deck trains being faster, the record setting TGV was a double deck train.
October 27th, 2009 at 1:40 pm
Alstom also has divisions here in the USA, employing many American workers. Recent projects at their factory in Hornell, NY include major projects for the NYC subway and Washington D.C. Metro. When America invests in high-speed rail through Alstom, they are keeping American workers employed.
October 27th, 2009 at 10:47 pm
@Andrew
Your assertion is to general to be accurate: a double decker can be as fast as or faster than single decker. You should read the wiki about the TGV Duplex, it’s very informative and exact. Because of the very special train structure (articulated train with bogies in between the cars) and very strict requirement of a 17-ton axle load limit, a Duplex weights the same than a TGV Réseau. The train set can reach speeds of 320kph and develops 23kW/t… This power to weight ratio is the real meter for any speed related issue.
All the figures given for an emtpy train set.
First TGVs (Sud-Est) - 16.7kW/t (weights 385 t)
ETR 500 - 14.72kW/t (598 t)
Eurostar (London-Paris) - 15.00kW/t
all similar, and by comparison;
TGV Duplex - 23kW/t (380 t)
Series 500 Japan - 28.9kW/t
ICE 3 - 19.5kW/t (409 t)
Velaro E - 20.7kW/t
AGV - 22kW/t
October 28th, 2009 at 7:53 am
Please included the Amtrak models that are the back bone of the US fleet these are a great source of infomations.
October 28th, 2009 at 1:21 pm
Walter: NJTransit owns an increasingly large fleet of Bombardier bi-level coaches that can fit in the Hudson river tunnels, and presumably most of the other low-clearance NYC tunnels as well. They’re now in widespread use during rush-hour service.
The interior of the trains are a bit cramped compared to some of their bi-level European counterparts, but are plenty comfortable. The absurdly huge Amtrak Superliners cannot fit through any of the NYC tunnels, and are (as far as I’m aware) taller than any other rolling stock in widespread use around the world. The loading gauge of the American rail system is generally quite a bit larger than what is seen in Europe.
Articulated bi-level coaches would be a particularly neat trick, and would likely increase capacity even further. Amtrak could possibly even run bi-level TGVs on the northeast corridor without extensive modification if they’re allowed to use NJTransit’s new tunnel. Why they didn’t do this to begin with boggles my mind… (European rolling stock also tends to offer much greater ride comfort than what’s available in the US, with the new NJTransit coaches coming immediately to mind)
October 28th, 2009 at 4:52 pm
@andrew
TGVs do not meet federal standards for running on shared rail systems with freight trains (meeting those standards would cause the TGVs to be much heaver so they wouldn’t be able to go as fast - that’s one of the problems with Amtrak’s Acela). This is also why CA is having to build all new dedicated tracks for their high speed rail. Unless the standards for passenger only trains gets changed, the dedicated tracks situation will have to remain.
October 28th, 2009 at 6:11 pm
@ Andrew -
Alstom’s TGV Duplex is an articulated trainset, there are Jacobs bogies in-between the cars.
The Talgo 21 DMU/22EMU are also articulated bi-level trainsets. The Spanish company’s patented wheelset, passive steering and passive tilt technologies are all included. With each wheel on its own axle, designers were able to create aisles that run the length of the train on both levels. The individual cars are very short (~8m = 25ft) but wide enough to seat five abreast. However, this particular product is aimed at the regional rail market so top speed are 140-200km/h (90-125mph). No word yet on when/if the company intends to apply this innovative bi-level concept to the HSR market, where it currently offers the single-level Talgo 350.
October 29th, 2009 at 9:15 am
[...] Part 1 Alstom [...]
October 29th, 2009 at 11:35 pm
Are you sure that Alstom is the top manufacturer of high-speed trains? I’m pretty sure that Kawasaki has made more; the Shinkansen has been around for twice as long as the TGV, and runs longer, more frequent trains.
November 4th, 2009 at 11:20 pm
[...] in the world, and Talgo claims that it will offer higher capacity and lower operations costs than Alstom’s new AGV or Bombardier’s Zefiro, both of which will be appealing [...]
November 4th, 2009 at 11:24 pm
[...] is part 2 of a multi-part series on the world’s high speed train makers. Part 1 — a profile of Alstom — ran on [...]
November 12th, 2009 at 1:15 pm
[...] Yonah Freemark has published a series of posts about train manufacturing companies. He started with Alstom, moved on to Bomardier, then examined Talgo and looked at the Japanese newcomers. Good [...]
November 20th, 2009 at 2:31 am
[...] . This is the 6th part in our series on high-speed rail manufacturers around the world. Previous stories looked at: Bombardier, Japanese train makers, Siemens, and Alstom. [...]
November 20th, 2009 at 12:44 pm
[...] is part 5 of a series that includes Alstom, Bombardier, Talgo and the Japanese [...]