U2 railcar
| Siemens-Duewag U2 | |
|---|---|
.jpg) Siemens-Duewag U2
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| Number: | 288, 104 of them for Frankfurt |
| Manufacturer: | DUEWAG , Wegmann , Siemens |
| Year of construction (s): | 1968-1990 |
| Retirement: | 2008–2016 (Frankfurt) |
| Axis formula : | B '2' B ' |
| Gauge : | 1435 mm ( standard gauge ) |
| Length over coupling: | 24,284 mm |
| Length: | 23,000 mm |
| Height: | 3,280 mm |
| Width: | 2,650 mm |
| Trunnion Distance: | 7,670 mm |
| Bogie axle base: | 1,800 mm |
| Empty mass: | 30,700 kg |
| Top speed: | 80 km / h (2 motors) 88 km / h (4 motors) |
| Installed capacity: | 2 × 150 kW = 300 kW or 4 × 136 kW = 544 kW |
| Driving wheel diameter: | 720 mm |
| Impeller diameter: | 720 mm |
| Power system : | 600 V DC |
| Number of traction motors: | 2 or 4 |
| Coupling type: | Scharfenberg |
| Seats: | 64 |
| Standing room: | 162 (Frankfurt) 200 (export) |
| Floor height: | 97 cm |
U2 railcar (or series U2 ) is the name for a family of high-floor light rail vehicles .
design type
The vehicle type was developed from 1966 by the Düwag company for use on the Frankfurt am Main subway . The series is based on the two 1965 also for Frankfurt -built prototypes of the type U1 , in turn, from the Düwag modular system for tram vehicles were derived. Since the experience from the trial operation on the Frankfurt Stadtbahn, which is under construction, made numerous changes to the design necessary, the series production vehicles were designated as the U2 series.
The type U2 was made of lightweight steel construction, while the driver's cabs are made of glass fiber reinforced plastic so that they can be easily replaced after accidents. The vehicles have three two-axle bogies , the two outer ones being driven. The car body is made in two parts, with a joint in the middle of the vehicle. All U2 cars were built as bidirectional vehicles and have Scharfenberg couplings on both sides . Train sets of up to six vehicles are possible.
The vehicles are equipped with a DC - derailleur equipped, the fully automatically from a SIMATIC is provided control. An exception are two vehicles delivered to Edmonton in 1988 that work internally with three-phase current . They were later taken to Calgary.
Frankfurt am Main
The type U2 was delivered to Frankfurt in seven series with a total of 104 copies between 1968 and 1984, where they were given the numbers 303 to 399 and 400 to 406. The delivery was initially made by rail (transition to the light rail network in Oberursel ) with class 50 steam locomotives on their own axles; after a derailment caused by the wider wheel tires, they were later transported on flat wagons . Part of the production was outsourced to the Kassel company Wegmann as part of the zone border funding .
The first series with 30 vehicles (303 to 332) was delivered between June 1968 and the beginning of 1969, with 20 vehicles available for start-up on October 4, 1968. The 15 vehicles of the second series were procured between May and September 1971 for operation on the A2 line (now the U2) to Bad Homburg. The third and fourth series with ten vehicles each served to increase capacity on the existing routes. They were put into operation between September 1975 and April 1976. The cars 303 to 367 were equipped with scissor pantographs when they were delivered, from number 368 with single-arm pantographs.
The fifth series with 25 vehicles and the sixth series with seven vehicles went into operation between December 1977 and September 1978. They were needed for the U3 line to Oberursel and for capacity increases on the U2 line. After five wagons (314, 317, 318, 320 and 323) were destroyed in a major fire in the Heddernheim depot on September 28, 1980, a seventh series with the seven wagons 400 to 406 was delivered between August and December 1984. The replica cars were given the new paint scheme of Stadtwerke Frankfurt (orange / ivory) from the outset and also differed slightly from the vehicles of the older series in terms of the interior design. At the seating groups there are green metal tables instead of white wooden tables, smooth plastic coverings replace the previous profiled rubber floors. The seats were covered with orange-colored fabric (later with blue-colored fabric in the typical VGF design, as was the case with the U3 car), while brown synthetic leather was used in the older vehicles. The dashboard was also changed and an automatic weight measurement system, which influences the acceleration and braking capacity, was installed, which was retrofitted in the older vehicles. All series were fully electrically compatible and could therefore be freely coupled with one another.
Color schemes
The 97 vehicles of the first six series were delivered in the Frankfurt city colors red / white and from 1981 gradually repainted in orange / ivory. The seven vehicles of the replica series from 1984 were already delivered in this color scheme. From 1996 onwards there was another repainting in the new VGF corporate color “subaru vista blue” (a kind of turquoise). The U2h railcars 303 and 304, which have been preserved as museum cars, have had their original red / white paintwork again since summer 2011, as has car 305 since 2015.
Conversions
Changes to the platform heights required several modifications in the door area. The original U2 type was designed with a fixed step at a height of around 68 cm for platform heights of 32 and 56 cm. From 1999 the platforms of the A-line (U1-U3) were raised to 80 cm to allow barrier-free boarding of the U4 railcars . The B-route (U4, U5) and the C-route (U6, U7) had 87 cm high platforms from the start. Therefore, the U2 railcars were converted into two variants U2h and U2e:
U2h
- In the U2h type, the steps were raised to a height of 87 cm. With a floor height of 97 cm, a small step remained in the door area. Thus, during the renovation period on the A-route, these cars could stop at both 56 cm and 80 cm high platforms.
U2e
- After the lower U4 vehicles were used on the A routes, the U2 vehicles that became available could be converted for the U4 and U7 lines. For this purpose, the steps were completely removed, so that an almost level access from the platform to the train was possible. The 34 railcars rebuilt in the summer of 1998 have been in use on the U7 since September 20, 1998. In the years 2005 to 2012, 14 former U2h cars, which had been replaced on the A route from 2008 by new U5 railcars, were converted to type U2e for use on the U4 line extended to Enkheim.
Most of the U2 cars (with the exception of car 368, all U2e and some U2h cars) were equipped with larger driver's cabins (extension towards the passenger compartment) and new driver's seats. However, due to the start of decommissioning, not all vehicles were converted. The type U2e also received one barrier-free door on each side of the car. To do this, the central pole was removed, which made it necessary to install a new light barrier system. To make it easier to identify, the barrier-free door was marked with a yellow line above the entrance. In order to ensure that no one accidentally blocked the new type of light barrier, a signal generator was installed that emitted a tone as soon as the light barrier was interrupted after the door release was removed. The installation of this facility began in 2001.
commitment
The type U2 was used on all three main lines of the Frankfurt subway network. Only the U5 line, which is not equipped with elevated platforms throughout, and the new line to Riedberg, which is used by the two lines U8 and U9, were excluded . There was an explicit driving ban for U2 cars because of the relatively steep incline behind the junction in Niederursel. This driving ban was indicated by stickers in the driver's cabs.
Apart from the fire victims in 1980, the decommissioning began with the delivery of the U5 series from 2008. The scheduled use on the A route ended on November 5, 2012. Only two U2h cars remained after their retirement over the winter of 2012/2013 in the Heddernheim depot, to clear iced overhead lines if necessary.
In spring 2015, the operation of U2e vehicles on the U4 line ended. Since 2016, they have not been in regular service on the C route either, but have only been kept as a reserve. To say goodbye, there was a special trip with six U2 railcars on April 3, 2016, which marked the final end of the use of the U2 railcars. The U2h cars 303, 304 and 305 - the first three vehicles of the "U2" type - have been added to the historic VGF fleet and will be retained for special trips. They were optically restored to their red and white delivery condition. Technically, the historic vehicles are at the level of their last year of use. So you still have IBIS devices , digital stop announcement instead of compact cassette and a door opening button with an integrated intercom. The driver's cabs of these vehicles were also not enlarged because the old seats are still there. The remaining U2 cars were scrapped between 2013 and 2017.
export
Edmonton
In 1978 Edmonton opened a 20.3 km long light rail line as Edmonton Light Rail Transit , for whose operation U2 cars were also ordered from Düwag. However, around a third of the vehicle components were manufactured in Edmonton itself. A total of 37 vehicles were produced that are still in use. As of 2005, 37 cars of the successor Siemens SD-160 were ordered from Siemens Mobility USA. A second light rail line has been in operation since 2015, the 3.3-kilometer metro line.
Calgary
In 1981, another light rail system was put into operation in Calgary with the so-called C-Train . After good experiences with the U2 in Edmonton, 83 vehicles of the type were also ordered, 80 of which are still in existence. They should remain in use until 2023. From 2001, 66 units of the successor model Siemens SD-160 were purchased and from 2013 an order was placed for 63 vehicles of the latest offshoot Siemens S200.
San Diego
San Diego opened California's first light rail system , the San Diego Trolley , in July 1981 . U2 vehicles were also used for the San Diego Trolley ; the first 14 vehicles were delivered as early as 1980. A total of 71 vehicles were produced up to 1990, making San Diego the youngest vehicles in the U2 family. In contrast to Frankfurt, Edmonton and Calgary, elevated platforms were not used, so the vehicles there are equipped with steps up to street level. Taking into account the climatic conditions in their area of operation, the U2 cars of the San Diego Trolley are equipped with air conditioning . The vehicle fleet has now been supplemented by the U2 successor type Siemens SD-100 and low-floor vehicles of the type Siemens Avanto / S70 .
Mendoza
Since the start of trial operation on the light rail network in Mendoza on February 28, 2012, U2 railcars that were taken over from San Diego have also been running there .
Individual evidence
- ↑ Private page about the SD-U2-AC
- ↑ See also delivery of U2 cars on myvideo.de
- ↑ Frankfurter Urgestein - Farewell to the U2 car ( Memento of the original from April 4, 2016 in the Internet Archive ) Info: The archive link was inserted automatically and has not yet been checked. Please check the original and archive link according to the instructions and then remove this notice. , VGF press release of March 24, 2016, accessed on April 4, 2016
literature
- Jens Krakies, Frank Nagel: Stadtbahn Frankfurt am Main: A Documentation . 2nd Edition. Frankfurt am Main 1989, ISBN 3-923907-03-6 , pp. 188-193 .
- Horst Michelke, Claude Jeanmaire: 100 years of Frankfurt trams: 1872 - 1899 - 1972 . 1st edition. Verlag Eisenbahn, Villigen AG, near Brugg / Switzerland 1972, ISBN 3-85649-018-3 , p. 168-174 (illustrated part) .
Web links
- Calgary Transit (English)
- Edmonton Light Rail Transit (Future Projects )
- San Diego Trolley (English)
