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The Professional Two-Monthly Magazine Of Worldwide Volume 13 No. 2/13 € 10.00

âD News Initial Results China To Europe Freights Wheelset Torsion Oscillations EMU Modernisation lay R 213 tisk 1 p23-46_Lay R 408 3.5.13 13:27 Page 30

ModernisingModernising OfOf TheThe ArlandaArlanda ExpressExpress In 2010/11 the seven Class EMUs used on the service linking with Arlanda airport were subjected to a major refurbishment, which also resulted in a 20 % increase in seating capacity. The operator is endeavouring to win more passengers and thus to ease local road congestion and resultant contamination.

Planning for a rail link to Arlanda been developed, and in particular the An Arlanda Express X3 EMU, wearing the new livery, running at full speed airport began in the early 1980s, and fact that A-Train was able to set fares between Stockholm and the airport. in 1993 the Swedish Government as high as it wished, resulting in patro- Photo: Patric Johansson invited tenders for a public-private nage levels which were too low to make partnership to build the 19 km double the service economically self-supporting russet red and grey, with yellow grab- the old seats, a new colour scheme track branch from the Stockholm to (the initial target specified in the late rails. Tare weight was initially 193 t. on some of the bulkhead walls and , Gävle and line, the 1990s was 5.1 million passengers per The first Arlanda Express train new carpet on some parts of the floor. Ostkustbana. In August the following annum by 2005). The Swedish Parlia- arrived in in June 1998, more Three colour schemes, green, orange year the contract was awarded to a con- ment reached similar conclusions in than one year before the start of regular and blue, were used, the design being sortium formed of the Nordic Construc- a motion passed on 7 October 2008, service. There was thus plenty of time realised by those who designed the tion Company, Siab, Vattenfall, GEC also noting that A-Train was free to for an exhaustive series of test runs. fashion label of the former Swedish Alsthom and Mowlem. Construction charge as much as it wished to other A very extensive programme was com- tennis player Björn Borg, and with the began in 1995 and A-Train was created train operators wanting to divert their pleted before the trains could enter same name and motif (a tennis ball on as the operating company, its conces- services via the airport line. service. No fewer than three govern- the antimacassars). sion running until 2040. Inauguration In that year Arlanda Express car- ment agencies were present to moni- of the line, which forms a loop leaving ried 25 % of all passengers travelling tor the test runs: the Swedish National Framtidståg the Ostkustbana at Myrbacken and between Stockholm and the airport, and Electrical Safety Board, the Swedish rejoining it at Skavstaby, took place on 9 % of all airport employees (the latter, National Rail Authority and the Swedish In 2008 A-Train launched its 25 November 1999. Three stations are around 16,000 of them, enjoy free car Railway Inspectorate. After an exhaus- Framtidståg (Future Train) project, bud- provided, one at Sky City, on the loop, parking at Arlanda). Although the state tive year-long trial, the first Arlanda geted at 100 million SEK (10.6 million and two on the short branch serving held an option to purchase operating Express EMUs entered service in EUR). This was prompted by the need Terminal 5, and Terminals 2, 3 and 4. rights from A-Train in 2010, and thus November 1999. to encourage more airline passengers All the airport stations are subterranean, reduce fares and line access charges, In 2006 the X3s were subjected to switch to rail travel between Arlanda the main tunnel (excluding the branch) it was reckoned that this would be to an interior refurbishment pro- and the capital. Such is the volume of being 5,101 m long. Electrification is the a waste of public money, since in any gramme, this including new fabrics on road traffic to and from the airport that standard Swedish 15 kV AC 16.7 Hz. case in 2040 the line would revert to A-Train holds the monopoly for car- state ownership, without any charges rying passengers between Stockholm involved. Moreover, early in 2010 Central and the airport, whilst other Stockholm residents using the service operators can only serve Sky City, and voted Arlanda Express the best com- are not allowed to carry passengers pany in the travel industry. between there and the capital. A-Train services are quarter-hourly, with five The Trains departures per hour at peaks, journey time being around 20 minutes. The A batch of seven four-car 200 km/h standard single fare is 260 SEK Class X3 EMUs was ordered from GEC (29.7 EUR), though with various dis- Alsthom’s Birmingham works in 1998/9. counts (for instance, the return fare for These 93.4 m long, 3.06 m wide, air pensioners and youngsters up to 25 conditioned trains, which have a Bo’Bo’ + years of age is 120 SEK, and there is 2’2’ + 2’2’ + Bo’Bo’ axle arrangement, a weekend two-for-the-price-of-one are rated at 2,240 kW (each three- offer). phase asynchronous traction motor is Since 2004 A-Train has been owed rated at 280 kW) and Onix control and by the Australia-based Macquarie IGBT converters. They were originally Group, which paid 70 million SEK for fitted with single-class 2 + 2 seating, the company and also assumed respon- in rows, for 190 passengers. Luggage sibility for a debt of 330 million SEK stacks were provided, together with The lounge car is fitted with row of fixed seats facing the windows, (35 million EUR). The same year the wheelchair spaces and a wheelchair- under which there are shelves for passengers’ refreshments. The Service Swedish National Audit Office criticised accessible WC cubicle. The interior Point is on the right, in the background. the way the Arlandabana project had colour scheme was predominantly Photo: Björn Fredriksson

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Two views of the interior of the Framtidståg: note the thin seat shells, the wood trim on the luggage racks and window frames, and the spot lighting.

Photos: Patric Johansson

the CO2 limits established for the area the vacuum-formed plastic seat backs, tem, which offers a more subdued illu- cars. This was wheelchair-accessible, around the latter have now been slightly shell-shaped to offer passen- mination and which is controlled by but has been replaced by a new one, reached, and should they be exceeded gers greater privacy, are thinner than GPS. When the train is on the move somewhat larger. the Swedish Government can order the those originally fitted on the trains. the lighting level is reduced, coming to The exterior livery has been number of aircraft arrivals and depar- Space is provided for small items full strength at station stops. The degree revised, with the yellow on the cab ends tures to be reduced. In 2008 Arlanda of luggage to be stowed under the of illumination can also be adjusted being extended diagonally further back Express was used by around 3.2 mil- seats, and the armrests, which can manually by train staff. New carpets have to roof level, and white replacing grey, lion passengers (up by 25 % on the be raised and lowered, are made of been laid, floor and ceiling acoustic the styling giving an impression of 2005 figure), while the airport handled brushed steel. There is a cup holder insulation has been enhanced. The win- speed. „Arlanda Express“ is emblazoned some 18.1 million passengers (7 % between each seat, together with dows are now fitted with sun blinds, on the sides of the cars in gold and sil- more than in 2005). The train would a socket for powering personal elec- and these can be individually adjusted ver letters. On the entrance doors is appear to be gaining ground, and in tronic equipment. More seating space by passengers. the Good Environmental Choice sym- response to this the operator decided has been gained through the elimina- The video screens, used for both bol. The has been painted to increase seating capacity by 20 %, tion of the original luggage stacks, si- information and advertising purposes, green, again to emphasise the envi- while not compromising on comfort tuated adjacent to each entrance are now mounted on the glazed interior ronmentally friendly aspects of electric standards, since the objective is to win vestibule, replaced by conventional bulkheads. The ceilings of the entrance traction. as many passengers as possible. overhead longitudinal racks with trans- vestibules are decorated with a leaf In early 2010 the first of the X3s parent bases, the latter enabling pas- motif pattern. Updating The Traction was sent to the Euromaint Rail works sengers to keep an eye on their perso- One of the intermediate cars now Equipment in Malmö for its second refurbish- nal belongings. Spaces designated for has a lounge area. There are shelves ment, and was outshopped in late wheelchair harness points or prams on each sidewall, large enough to As part of its efforts to maintain its June 2010. The seventh X3 returned are fitted with tip-up seats. The original accommodate not only a cup or glass, high punctuality levels (as high as 99 %), to service in 2011. Idesign was given heating ducts, situated where the side- but also a laptop. Bar-style stools are in July 2012 A-Train selected ABB to overall responsibility for the refurb walls meet the floor, have been replaced provided adjacent to the shelves. Free design a refurbishment project for the design, exterior and interior. The inte- by new ones, of a shape which enables wireless Internet is offered and this car trains’ traction transformers, to improve rior included all visible parts such as them to be used more comfortably as also includes a Service Point desk equipment performance, reduce life seats, window frames, lighting, handrails, footrests by those passengers occu- which, once tickets have been checked, cycle costs, and limit the risk of power the WC fittings, sun protection and the pying window seats. Seating capacity is staffed by the train crew. Here informa- breakdown and outage. integrated displays in the glass walls. has been increased to 237. tion concerning the airport complex, Each Arlanda Express EMU is A-Train worked closely with the suppliers Interior lighting was originally by airline services and hotels can be equipped with one traction trans- of all these components, considering means of fluorescent tubes. These have obtained. The X3s originally had one former. ABB has custom-designed also the choice of materials, colour been replaced by a spot lighting sys- WC cubicle, in one of the intermediate a new traction transformer that fits per- schemes, and designs. A full-size mock-up of a train inte- rior was finally developed in A-Train’s Photo: workshop, using design concepts pre- Arlanda Express pared in two and three dimensions. Such a mock-up was considered essen- tial, to test out the design among poten- tial passengers and to assess the opinions of handicapped passengers, including those with only partial sight. The seat units were produced by Safeman of Olofström, the lighting was mainly produced by Flux, and the whole of the refurb was undertaken by Euromaint. Idesign subsequently re- ceived the Red Dot Design Award for the interior design of the trains and in May 2011 in the Global AirRail Award the Framtidståg have been named as Project of the Year. Idesign describes the refurb as „New Nordic“, featuring wood trim on the window surrounds and along the overhead luggage racks. The seat units feature woollen upholstery in pastel shades of brown, grey and blue, while Arlanda Express X3 EMUs at Stockholm Central, at that time wearing their older livery.

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Picture: ABB

An ABB underfloor traction transformer similar to the one that ABB has designed for Arlanda Express. The transformer is fitted in a cubicle measuring 3,700 mm in length, 2,260 mm in width and 810 mm in Photo: Melker Larsson height (overall dimensions). It weighs 6,800 kg. On 9 December 2013 SL started a new all-stations suburban service linking fectly with the original 15 year-old trac- vanced diagnostics - all backed up by Älvsjö and Uppsala, and thus calling at both Stockholm Central and Arlanda tion converters and motors, and retains a long ABB warranty. Central. Journey time from Stockholm Central to Arlanda Central is 37 minutes, the existing interfaces with all the traction ABB will complete the delivery of compared with the 20 minutes offered by Arlanda Express. However the single components and bodyshell. The trans- the first three traction transformers for fare is just 120 SEK, compared with that of 260 SEK charged by Arlanda Express. former is designed to operate under Arlanda Express in 2013. The trans- The SL service is operated using Coradia Nordic X60 EMUs, which have wider low temperature conditions (down to formers will be built at ABB Sécheron bodyshells than do the Arlanda Express EMUs, and a different entrance door -35 0C), and has a maximum output of Geneve, the installation being realised threshold height. Because of this the Coradia Nordics use Arlanda Central station power of 2,790 kVA. The transformer at Arlandastad depot located a couple in SkyCity, situated between Terminals 4 and 5. This is also used by other local includes one primary winding, four of kilometers from Arlanda’s interna- and long distance services, whereas the Arlanda Express trains serve Arlanda traction windings and four auxiliary tional airport. A-Train has an option to South (for Terminals 2 and 3) and Arlanda North (for Terminal 5). Here we see windings. The new traction transformer order five more transformers for delivery X6055 on one of SL’s first all-stations cross-capital services to Älvsjö weighs the same and has the same in 2013 and 2014, with the eighth waiting to depart from Uppsala on 9 December 2012. dimensions as the original one whilst intended as a spare unit. providing a huge 20 % boost in reserve compared with 130 million SEK in 2011. its Alvsjö to Uppsala suburban trains power to accommodate any future 2012 Results Revenues rose to 642 million SEK at Arlanda Central to set down pas- improvements to the train that might And 2013 Outlook (626 million SEK in 2011). sengers. This should result in an in- require additional energy. In 2012 the platform access and crease in the use of rail to access the ABB has tailored a full service In 2012 3.3 million passengers the platforms at Arlanda were upgraded airport. However, also from 9 December contract extending for six years to meet chose to travel with Arlanda Express. with artistic installations, consisting of 2012 UL’s Upptåget service between A-Train’s precise needs and ensure that A further 1.3 million travelled to and various contemplative designs with Upplands Väsby, Arlanda and Uppsala the new traction transformers perform from airport with other rail operators sounds and images providing a wel- has ceased to call at the airport. as specified and at the lowest possible that use the Arlanda Link. This total of come oasis of tranquility for busy trav- life cycle cost. The contract includes 4.6 million rail passengers is the highest ellers. A new development is that Mike Bent on-site supervision of transformer instal- so far. Arlanda Express reported pre-tax since 9 December 2012 SL, Stock- using Arlanda Express lation, on-site staff training, and ad- profits of 142 million SEK for 2012, holm’s authority, stops and ABB sources

United Colours Of Junipers As reported in R 2/12, p. 11, the Class 458/0 Juniper EMUs and the Class 460 Gatwick Express EMUs, owned by Porterbrook Leasing, are to be merged into a single fleet of trains for use by South West Trains. The 30 four-car 458s and eight eight-car 460s (in all, 184 cars) are to be recombined to create 36 five-car trains (in all 180 cars). The conversion work is being carried out by Wabtec's Doncaster works (intermediate cars) and Brush works, Loughborough (end cars). The 42 million GBP project, which was announced in December 2011, will use 60 cars from of the former eight-car Class 460 Gatwick Express EMUs, these being added to the four car Class 458/0s to create five new Class 458/5 EMUs and also to lengthen the original Class 458/0 sets to five cars. All the lengthened trains are to become Class 458/5. The four surplus Class 460 DMLFOs (Driving Motor Luggage First Opens) are being stripped for spares before being scrapped, although one or two might be kept as reserves in case of accident damage. The modification work to the Class 460 intermediate cars includes over 5,000 wiring modifications, the re-gearing of the driveline from a top speed of 160 km/h to one of 120 km/h and the installation of Automatic Selective Door Opening. At Loughborough the Class 460 driving cars will lose their characteristic „Darth Vader“ front ends, to be replaced by ones which are compatible with the Class 458s. The four DMLFO cars will have their passenger accommodation extended into the former luggage space. The problems with the Class 458/0 driving end corridor connections will also be rectified during the transfor- mation, thereby allowing full access through trains when running in multiple. The trains will also be made compatible with the Class 450 Desiro EMU fleets (although it is not intended to use them in multiple with the latter on a regular basis), and will be deployed on services between London Waterloo and Reading, operating in multiple as ten-car forma- tions. Here we see TSO (Trailer Second Open) 74443 (from 460 003), still in Gatwick Express livery, being stripped out and TSO 74444 (from 460 004) being lifted ready for the next phase of work on 16 April 2013. TSO 74445 (from 460 005, not visible) was the vehicle closest to completion and will be used as a test „bench“ before being fully fitted out. Antony Christie

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