03.01.17
Crossrail trains undergo intense weather testing in Austria
Crossrail trains are having their readiness to cope with extreme heat and cold tested at a special facility in Vienna.
Bombardier Transportation, which is building the new trains in Derby, delivered the front carriage of a test train to the Rail Tec Arsenal test centre on 30 December for three weeks of testing.
The train’s heating, ventilation and air-conditioning system, windscreen wipers, demister, train horns and traction motor will be subject to simulations of temperatures ranging from -25°C to +40°C. Rail Tec Arsenal is the only facility in Europe capable of this level of testing.
Howard Smith, operations director for the Elizabeth Line, as Crossrail is also known, said: “Although we've not had snow in London yet this year, we've put the train through a white Christmas.
“It’s important that we check that the new trains can operate in anything that the changing British weather can throw at them and it won't be long before our customers will be able to get on board a train, with the first of them going into service in May 2017.”
Dean Taplin, senior vehicle engineer at Bombardier, said testing all aspects of the train, including its reaction to thick snow and ice, was “key” to the passenger experience.
The extreme weather over Christmas caused disruption to rail services, with trains cancelled and delayed in Scotland and the North of England because of Storm Barbara.
Other Crossrail trains moved from Derby to London for more testing last month.
(Image c. Transport for London)
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