Stadler GTW


The Stadler GTW is an articulated railcar for local transport made by Stadler Rail of Switzerland. The vehicles can be built for metre, standard and Iberian gauges and can use diesel or electric power supply. Variants have also been produced for use on rack railways. Until 2011, 551 units had been sold and GTW vehicles are in use in Austria, France, Germany, Greece, Italy, the Netherlands, Slovakia, Switzerland and the United States.

History

The first GTW railcars were metre-gauge electric vehicles for the Biel–Täuffelen–Ins-Bahn and Chemins de fer électriques Veveysans in Switzerland. Eleven trains were ordered in 1994 and delivered in 1997. The traction equipment was located in a central power unit instead of being mounted on the roof which meant that the railways did not have to modify their workshops to allow access to the train roofs. The car bodies used a lightweight bolted construction to reduce operating costs.
Stadler presented the first standard-gauge diesel-electric prototype in 1995, intended for the German market. After testing this unit was acquired by the Mittelthurgau-Bahn along with two more identical units for use on the Radolfzell–Mengen railway. A further 30 units were ordered by Hessische Landesbahn and 66 by DB Regio. The passenger sections for the HLB and DB trains were built by DWA Bautzen and have fibre-glass cabs with a much rounder shape than the MThB trains.
The second generation can be easily distinguished by its rounded cab made from FRP. A batch of 12 trains went to Athens in meter gauge. With the second generation the available options for GTW trains expanded. Meter-gauge vehicles could be ordered with width and standard-gauge vehicles in a width. Vehicles could also be expanded with a third passenger section.
Image:Vinschgaubahn 01.jpg|thumb|225px|Third Generation: Stadler GTW 2/6 diesel electric for Societá Automobilistica Dolomiti, used on the Ferrovia della Val Venosta, at Mals station in Italy
The third generation has minor modifications to the cab shape but the more important changes were made to the power module. The electric variant's power was increased to, instead of up to, and the diesel-electric variant was available with two generators instead of one. This allowed a higher maximum speed, which was a requirement of Italian customers. The concept impressed the Arriva operator in the Netherlands which ordered 43 trains in 2005 asking for some further developments. The modified type sold well to other operators in the Netherlands and abroad, as both DMU and EMU variants.
The fourth generation was modified to comply with the EN 15227 crashworthiness requirements, which applied from 2008. In the same year much of the production was moved to the Stadler's factory in Siedlce, Poland.
Because of the crashworthiness requirements, the GTW gained weight over time. The original concept in 1998 weighed per seat while in 2010 this had increased to per seat. This was higher than a FLIRT ET 22 from 2007, at per seat. As a consequence, the manufacturer saw its biggest customers, Arriva and Connexxion, switch over to the FLIRT models for the following deliveries in 2012. Only some replacements for diesel-electric and cog-wheel trains followed after that point in time. For those application areas Stadler introduced the WINK concept in 2018. FLIRT and WINK are the next-generation models that can support updated crashworthiness requirements. Like Stadler's GTW family of multiple units, WINK has a central power module containing the energy generation, traction and auxiliary systems, while the frame and other parts are derived from the FLIRT models.

Technical description

Unlike high-floor railcars, with traction equipment under the floor, or other low-floor designs, with some equipment on the roof, the GTW is driven by a central power module with two powered axles. The three-car variant has two lightweight passenger modules, each with one bogie, resting on the power module and is designated GTW 2/6 because two of its six axles are powered. Longer four-car GTW 2/8 vehicles have an extra passenger section on one side of the powerpack. Two three-car units with cabs at only one end and Gangway connections at the other form a GTW 4/12. For operational flexibility up to four GTWs can be operated in multiple.
The passenger sections do not need to carry any traction equipment and use a lightweight aluminium construction. The power module is constructed from welded steel. They have a low floor over most of their length, except over the bogies. The modular design of the GTW means that the end modules can be delivered with screw couplings and buffers or with Scharfenberg couplers.
All of the usual comforts to be expected in a modern local network railcar are provided, such as air conditioning, a multi-purpose area, vacuum toilets and a passenger information system.
Although the traction is good for the powered bogies the concept has the same problem as other light railcars with the brakes on the non-powered axles having lower grip than traditional railcars. This has led to restrictions when leaves are on the rails as the wheel slide protection can not fully compensate the effect. The central power module has limits with heat dissipation as well which can lead to situations where the power output needs to be limited.

Propulsion

GTWs can be diesel–electric or electric-powered. The first diesel powered units had a MTU engine. Later units use two MAN engines. Electric propulsion modules with are available. IGBT based traction converters together with asynchronous motors are used as drive units. The traction converters are manufactured by ABB at their site in Turgi, Switzerland and the motors by TSA Austria.

Operations

Austria

In 1998 the Linzer Lokalbahn placed an order which needed to be modified to conform to the DIN 5510 class 2 safety standard, as well as different electrification. These eight trains were delivered in 2000 from the Swiss facilities and an option of six more trains was fulfilled in 2005.
Steiermärkischen Landesbahnen ordered six GTW railcars in 2009 for use on the Styria S-Bahn. Three are diesel and three electric but they use as many common parts as possible to reduce maintenance costs.

France

The Panoramique des Dômes rack railway in France uses four GTW 2/6 since opening in 2012.

Greece

In Greece, Hellenic Train operates two variants of the Stadler GTW 2/6, owned by OSE. It is the main suburban DMU and there are two variants, for metre and the standard gauge. The metre-gauge variant operates in the Suburban of Patras and the tourist line of Katakolo–Pyrgos–Ancient Olympia. The standard-gauge variant operates on the Athens–Lianokladi regional service and the Lianokladi–Lamia–Stylida line. In the near future, it is expected they will operate on different lines due to the electrification of the main network.

Italy

In Italy, GTW are used by some regional railways. The Vinschgerbahn, operated by Societá Automobilistica Dolomiti was the first to order twelve vehicles in 2004, extended by eight vehicles of the same type for the Udine–Cividale line in Padova, also in 2004.
Operators and classes of GTW in Italy are:
In 2005 the multinational transport company Arriva ordered 43 GTW diesel railcars for use on regional services in Groningen and Friesland. The vehicles are used on the lines: Leer –Groningen, Delfzijl–Groningen, Leeuwarden–Groningen, Roodeschool/Eemshaven–Sauwerd, Veendam–Zuidbroek, Leeuwarden–Stavoren, Leeuwarden–Harlingen Haven. From December 2012, Arriva has also used diesel GTWs on Tiel-Arhnem, Arnhem–Winterswijk, Winterswijk–Zutphen and Zutphen–Apeldoorn.
File:Arriva Stadler GTW departing Groningen Nord towards Eemshaven.jpg|thumb|Arriva GTW departing Groningen Noord towards Eemshaven
In December 2024, trainsets 314 and 350 were moved from Groningen-Friesland and restickered to fulfil services on the Zutphen-Hengelo-Oldenzaal line in combination with Alstom LINT 41 trainsets.
The electric GTW are used on the Dordrecht–Gorinchem–Geldermalsen line and from December 2012 also on the Zwolle–Emmen line. Since December 2022 electric GTWs are also used on the weekly Arriva night train service between Groningen and Schiphol Airport.
Arriva Limburg uses electric GTW on the Kerkrade Centrum–Heerlen–Maastricht Randwyck and Heerlen–Maastricht lines, and diesel units are used on the Roermond–Venlo–Nijmegen lines.
Connexxion used one electric GTW for the Barneveld Centrum–Amersfoort line. This GTW is transferred to the Vechtdallijnen from Arriva, Starting in December 2012 Connexxion also uses nine diesel GTWs for the Breng concession.

Slovakia

The Železničná spoločnosť Slovensko use two classes of metre-gauge electric GTW on the Tatra Electric Railway. Fifteen Class 425.95 were delivered between 2000 and 2006. Five ZSSK Class 495.95 trains were delivered in 2021. These are capable of operating on both the Tatra Electric Railway and the Štrbské Pleso–Štrba rack railway.
ZSSK also operate standard-gauge diesel GTWs in the Poprad region. From December 2020 these trains are also used on the Bratislava—Komárno line.

Spain

The Ferrocarrils de la Generalitat de Catalunya purchased two diesel-powered, Iberian gauge trains for use on the Lleida–La Pobla Line. The trains are designated class 331 and entered service in 2016. A third GTW entered service in 2022.
FGC also operates seven narrow-gauge trains for their rack railway lines. The first five trains were purchased in 2000 for the Montserrat Rack Railway and the remaining two were ordered in 2001 for the Vall de Núria Rack Railway. These units are electric-powered using a pantograph installed on the central carriage. Additionally, the Nuria trains have a second pantograph in the front car to remove ice and snow from the overhead wires on colder seasons. Between 2020 and 2022, the two trains from the Núria line have been transferred to the Montserrat line.