Applying the Circular Economy To Railway Industry

The Spanish manufacturer is once again demonstrating its technological capacity with a project that is unprecedented in the history of the world’s railways, blurring the boundaries between normal and very high-speed trains and implementing the principles of the circular economy to the sector by reusing existing assets. Talgo will create up to 19 passenger trains from existing conventional units, with a maximum commercial speed of 330 km/h.

A Huge Refurbishment

In June 2018 Renfe awarded Talgo the refurbishment of more than a hundred Talgo series 7 passenger cars, a technological platform of which the 130 and 730 series also form part. These units had initially been operated by Renfe under the commercial brand “Trenhotel” and were specially designed for overnight services on lines where both Iberian and European standard gauge coexist, although with a maximum speed limited to 220 km/h. They also lacked motive power, as they were loco-hauled.

The order specified the need to convert these units into day trains, raising their maximum commercial speed to over 300 kph, but maintaining in any case their ability to change gauge without stopping. Three years after the initial contract, Renfe also awarded Talgo the manufacture of 26 powerheads, two for each train. Both orders will allow creating 13 complete very high-speed trains that can be operated virtually throughout the entire Spanish electrified rail network, and, if all the options reserved by the operator are executed, this number would rise to 19 trains.

Conventional Cars... At Very High-Speed

The cars to be upgraded are all of Talgo’s Series 7 and come mainly from those assigned to Trenhotel overnight services, although cars belonging to the Series 130, also manufactured by Talgo and which were in reserve, will also be modernized.

The initial order contemplates the transformation of 156 cars, to form 13 trains of 12 cars each, and is possible only thanks to the lightness and scalability of the self-steering independently rotating wheel technology, that is exclusive to Talgo trains, and allows reducing the overall weight of the train and minimizes the stress state of the infrastructure, resulting in lower needs of maintenance of both the infrastructure and the trains themselves.

State-of-the-art Powerheads

The 13 trains made up from the upgraded Series 7 cars will be fitted with cutting-edge traction technology: 26 powerheads essentially identical to those used in Renfe’s 106 series and belonging to the Avril technology platform.

These power heads, two for each train, are adjusted to the Iberian and European standard track gauges, and will also be multi-system, to adapt to various existing catenary voltages existing in our country: 3 kV in direct current and 25 kV in alternating current. In this way, they will be able to run both on conventional lines and on the new high-speed infrastructure, shortening travel times in the Iberian Peninsula.

Fully Accessible Trains

The transformation of these trainsets will not affect one of the hallmarks of Talgo technology: the continuous platform-level floor. As the vehicle floors are built to match the station ground height, the passengers can walk straight in off platform, avoiding stairs or ramps, which make the trains fully accessible.

Esto hará que los coches transformados sean indistinguibles de otros coches Talgo, reduciendo de forma significativa la duración de las operaciones de carga y descarga de viajeros en comparación a otros trenes con escalones y, en particular, respecto a las unidades de dos pisos. Esto no sólo aumentará el atractivo comercial para el cliente final, sino que además mejorará el flujo de personas en las estaciones y permitirá aliviar la situación de las infraestructuras con mayores problemas de capacidad.

Modularity At The Service Of The Operator

Talgo’s Series 7 is modular and therefore specially designed so that it can be customized to suit the railway operator’s needs, in a dynamic and ever-changing market. This technological capacity has made it possible to modify the structure of doors and windows, tailoring the car bodies to respond to new demands. As part of the project, the air conditioning output will also be increased and all types of systems and subsystems will be updated.

This will make it possible to put rolling stock, that has been parked and not performing, to new use, upgrading it in a cost-effective manner so that it can be put back into service, in line with the core principle of reuse underpinning the so-called Circular Economy. These upgrades are being carried out at Talgo’s factories in Las Matas (Madrid) and Rivabellosa (Basque Country).

Increased Capacity For A Competitive Market

The arrival of new operators in the Spanish railway sector has made it even more necessary to increase the performance of each service, and therefore their capacity. With this transformation and the use of new materials in the interior design configuration, the capacity will be increased to 405 passengers in a train composed of 10 tourist class cars and 1 business class car, plus a fully equipped cafeteria car.

Short cars of 13.14 meters in length, that characterize Talgo trains, will continue to be an advantage as they offer smart modular design of interior spaces that can quickly and easily accommodate different commercial demands throughout the rolling stock service life.

Talgo 102 and 112

Designed for a speed of 330 km/h and boasting outstanding performance, these trains have become the most widely used series by Renfe.

Since early 2005, Talgo’s series 102 trains have been in continuous services across Spain’s hish-speed rail network.

• All trains are equipped with Talgo’s own rolling assembly – the rodal or Talgo truck – which makes it possible for the train floor to be at platform level
• Talgo’s Series 102 and 112 trains offer the highest levels of comfort available on the market

Talgo 350 - The Desert Train

In 2011, Saudi Arabia awarded a Spanish consortium (called Al Shoula) the construction and operation contract for the 450km high-speed corridor between Mecca and Medina. The train chosen for the Saudi Railways was the Talgo 350.

Designing and manufacturing the Talgo 350 for the Haramain project required the development of many patents including guaranteeing protection from sand and dust, passenger comfort and safety in extreme climates, and ways to reduce wheel and rail wear in the desert.

• The Haramain project has been developed to transport a significant share of the more than 11 million pilgrims that travel to and from the holy cities of Mecca and Medina
• Each train can seat up to 417 passengers across 13 easy-to-access coaches
• Talgo has managed to avoid the devastating effects of airborne sand, which acts as an abrasive element on car bodies and windows, and may filter into the insides of the units.