Chiltern Railways has launched the HybridFlex train on the Aylesbury – London rail route providing quieter and quicker journeys while reducing the emissions.
The two-car train is powered by two mtu Hybrid PowerPacks reducing the CO2 emissions by up to 25 per cent. This is made possible by the recuperation of braking energy, which is stored in a battery, the so-called mtu EnergyPacks.
In the HybridFlex, the batteries are mounted under the floor of the vehicle. A new type of driver assistance system, the mtu Intelligent Drive Manager, is being used on this train for the first time. It ensures that the drive system automatically switches to all-electric operation in emission- and noise-sensitive areas such as cities or train stations. The driver does not have to actively intervene.
“It makes us proud to bring this groundbreaking propulsion solution, which we have continuously further developed over the past years, into regular service together with our partners,” Lei Berners-Wu, Vice President Global Industrial Business at Rolls-Royce business unit Power Systems said.
Chiltern Railways, Porterbrook and Rolls-Royce worked together to convert a Class 168 diesel multiple unit into one train that now runs on both diesel and battery power.
The partners are proving that existing rail vehicles can be used in a climate-friendly way without the need to install complex and expensive new infrastructure. It is the world’s first regular passenger operation with mtu Hybrid PowerPacks, of which 13 have already been ordered.
The hybrid diesel-battery-electric train is capable to run at a speed of 100mph on the UK’s national rail network.
The trains equipped with mtu Hybrid PowerPack can be operated on non-electrified routes purely electrically and thus locally emission-free, for example in urban areas or in stations. In pure electric operations, drive noise is reduced by about 75 per cent (20 dB(A)).
Another HybridFlex train is expected to enter commercial operation on the London to Oxford via Bicester Village route in the coming months. “HybridFlex is part of Porterbrook’s growing portfolio of alternative traction systems designed to help deliver a more sustainable railway,” Mary Grant, CEO of Porterbrook said.
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