137-446: The TGV ( French: [teʒeve] ; Train à Grande Vitesse , [tʁɛ̃ a ɡʁɑ̃d vitɛs] , "high-speed train"; formerly TurboTrain à Grande Vitesse ) is France's intercity high-speed rail service. With commercial operating speeds of up to 320 km/h (200 mph) on the newer lines, the TGV was conceived at the same period as other technological projects such as
274-765: A memorandum of understanding to join SkyTeam as its first non-airline partner. This cooperation will enable integrated intermodal transport ( air-rail ) in the UK, France and the Netherlands. Because the UK is not part of the European Union or the Schengen Area , and because the Netherlands, Belgium and France are not part of the Common Travel Area , all cross-channel Eurostar passengers must go through border controls . Both
411-567: A "TGV commuter belt" around Paris; the TGV also serves Charles de Gaulle Airport and Lyon–Saint-Exupéry Airport . A visitor attraction in itself, it stops at Disneyland Paris and in southern tourist cities such as Avignon and Aix-en-Provence as well. Brest , Chambéry , Nice , Toulouse and Biarritz are reachable by TGVs running on a mix of LGVs and modernised lines. In 2007, the SNCF generated profits of €1.1 billion (approximately US$ 1.75 billion, £875 million) driven largely by higher margins on
548-530: A 28-minute stop (which was not deemed long enough to process UK-bound passengers) and then carrying different passengers from Brussels to London. Initially passengers travelling back took a Thalys service to Brussels Midi/Zuid where they could join the Eurostar. This was due to the lack of facilities for juxtaposed controls by the UK Border Force at Amsterdam Centraal and Rotterdam Centraal. On 4 February 2020,
685-706: A Duplex set plus a Reseau set. Each set has a wheelchair accessible compartment. After a lengthy development process starting in 1988 (during which they were known as the TGV-2N) the original batch of 30 was built between 1995 and 1998. Further deliveries started in 2000 with the Duplex fleet now totaling 160 units, making it the backbone of the SNCF TGV-fleet. They weigh 380 tonnes and are 200 m (656 ft 2 in) long, made up of two power cars and eight carriages. Extensive use of aluminum means that they weigh not much more than
822-571: A capacity of 377 seats. They have a top speed of 320 km/h (199 mph). They are 200 m (656 ft 2 in) long and are 2.90 m (9 ft 6 in) wide. The bi-current sets weigh 383 tonnes: owing to axle-load restrictions in Belgium the tri-current sets have a series of modifications, such as the replacement of steel with aluminum and hollow axles, to reduce the weight to under 17 t per axle. Owing to early complaints of uncomfortable pressure changes when entering tunnels at high speed on
959-453: A capacity of 485 seats. They were built with a maximum speed of 300 km/h (186 mph) and 8,800 kW of power under 25 kV. The efficiency of the Atlantique with all seats filled has been calculated at 767 PMPG , though with a typical occupancy of 60% it is about 460 PMPG (a Toyota Prius with three passengers is 144 PMPG). Modified unit 325 set the world speed record in 1990 on
1096-408: A carbody design that would reduce wind resistance at high speeds. A long series of tests was carried. In 1905, St. Louis Car Company built a railcar for the traction magnate Henry E. Huntington , capable of speeds approaching 160 km/h (100 mph). Once it ran 32 km (20 mi) between Los Angeles and Long Beach in 15 minutes, an average speed of 130 km/h (80 mph). However, it
1233-449: A driver does not react within 1.5 km (0.93 mi), the system overrides the controls and reduces the train's speed automatically. The TVM safety mechanism enables TGVs using the same line to depart every three minutes. The TGV system itself extends to neighbouring countries, either directly (Italy, Spain, Belgium, Luxembourg and Germany) or through TGV-derivative networks linking France to Switzerland ( Lyria ), to Belgium, Germany and
1370-736: A further 20 minutes. The line's London terminal is London St Pancras International , which was redeveloped for the project. The HSL-Zuid ( Dutch : Hogesnelheidslijn Zuid , English: South high-speed line ), is a 125 km-long (78 mi) Dutch high-speed railway line that connects Amsterdam with the HSL 4 at the Belgium-Netherlands border. It opened on 7 September 2009. Eurostar offers up to 15 weekday London – Paris services (19 on Fridays) including nine non-stop (13 on Fridays). There are also nine (ten on Friday) London–Brussels services, of which two run non-stop (continuing to Amsterdam) and
1507-520: A further two call at Lille only. Four services daily operate to Amsterdam via Brussels and Rotterdam, some calling at Lille. There were also seasonal services: in the winter, "Snow trains", aimed at skiers, to Bourg-Saint-Maurice , Aime-la-Plagne and Moûtiers in the Alps ; these ran weekly, arriving in the alps in the evening and leaving the same evening to arrive in London the following morning. This service
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#17328451867611644-453: A grand Western European high-speed rail service covering the UK, France, Belgium, the Netherlands and Germany, serving up to 30 million customers by 2030. As of 2019, Thalys assisted Eurostar with onward connections between Amsterdam and Brussels, and to provide the Amsterdam to London service, in lieu of passport and customs checks at Amsterdam Centraal station . In September 2020,
1781-573: A high-speed railway network in Russian gauge . There are no narrow gauge high-speed railways. Countries whose legacy network is entirely or mostly of a different gauge than 1435mm – including Japan and Spain – have however often opted to build their high speed lines to standard gauge instead of the legacy railway gauge. High-speed rail is the fastest and most efficient ground-based method of commercial transportation. However, due to requirements for large track curves, gentle gradients and grade separated track
1918-406: A limited Discovery service; the full daily service started from 28 May 1995. In 1995, Eurostar was achieving an average end-to-end speed of 171.5 km/h (106.6 mph) from London to Paris. On 8 January 1996, Eurostar launched services from a second railway station in the UK when Ashford International was opened. Also in 1996, Eurostar commenced its year-round service to Disneyland with
2055-500: A major publicity campaign focusing on the speed, frequency, reservation policy, normal price, and broad accessibility of the service. This commitment to a democratised TGV service was enhanced in the Mitterrand era with the promotional slogan "Progress means nothing unless it is shared by all". The TGV was considerably faster (in terms of door to door travel time) than normal trains, cars , or aeroplanes . The trains became widely popular,
2192-811: A new high-speed line between Paris and the Channel Tunnel, LGV Nord; French TGV technology was chosen as the basis for the new trains. An order for 30 trainsets, to be manufactured in France but with some British and Belgian components, was placed in December 1989. On 20 June 1993, the first Eurostar test train travelled through the tunnel to the UK. Various technical difficulties in running the new trains on British tracks were quickly overcome. On 14 November 1994, Eurostar services began running from Waterloo International station in London, to Paris Nord , as well as Brussels-South railway station . The train service started with
2329-537: A new top speed for a regular service, with a top speed of 160 km/h (99 mph). This train was a streamlined multi-powered unit, albeit diesel, and used Jakobs bogies . Following the success of the Hamburg line, the steam-powered Henschel-Wegmann Train was developed and introduced in June 1936 for service from Berlin to Dresden , with a regular top speed of 160 km/h (99 mph). Incidentally no train service since
2466-474: A number of other countries: SNCF and Alstom are investigating new technology that could be used for high-speed transport. The development of TGV trains is being pursued in the form of the Automotrice à grande vitesse (AGV) high-speed multiple unit with motors under each carriage. Investigations are being carried out with the aim of producing trains at the same cost as TGVs with the same safety standards. AGVs of
2603-409: A phase break zone. Just before this section, train operators must power down the motors (allowing the train to coast ), lower the pantograph, adjust a switch to select the appropriate system, and raise the pantograph. Once the train exits the phase break zone and detects the correct electric supply, a dashboard indicator illuminates, and the operator can once again engage the motors. The Sud-Est fleet
2740-427: A power output of 9,600 kW and a top speed of 320 km/h (199 mph). Unlike TGV-A, TGV-R and TGV-D, they have asynchronous motors, and isolation of an individual motor is possible in case of failure. The bi-current TGV 2N2 (Avelia Euroduplex) can be regarded as the 3rd generation of Duplex. The series was commissioned from December 2011 for links to Germany and Switzerland (tri-current trains) and to cope with
2877-426: A powered bogie in the carriages adjacent to the power cars. They are 200 m (656 ft 2 in) long and 2.81 m (9 ft 3 in) wide. They weighed 385 tonnes (849,000 lb) with a power output of 6,450 kW under 25 kV. The sets were originally built to run at 270 km/h (168 mph) but most were upgraded to 300 km/h (186 mph) during mid-life refurbishment in preparation for
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#17328451867613014-567: A quick connection to further destinations on the continent. All three main terminals used by the Eurostar service – London St Pancras International, Paris Nord, and Brussels-South – are served by domestic trains and by local urban transport networks such as the London Underground , Paris Metro , Brussels Metro and Amsterdam Metro . Standard Eurostar tickets no longer include free onward connections to or from any other station in Belgium: this
3151-405: A set of semi-permanently coupled articulated un-powered coaches . Cars are connected with Jacobs bogies , a single bogie shared between the ends of two coaches. The only exception are the end cars, which have a standalone bogie on the side closest to the power car, which is often motorized. Power cars also have two bogies. Trains can be lengthened by coupling two TGVs, using couplers hidden in
3288-430: A single corporate entity, Eurostar International Limited (EIL), replacing the joint operation between EUKL, SNCF and SNCB/NMBS. EIL is ultimately owned by SNCF (55%), Caisse de dépôt et placement du Québec (CDPQ) (30%), Hermes Infrastructure (10%) and SNCB (5%). By January 2021, Eurostar ridership went down to less than 1% of pre-pandemic levels. The combined financial troubles and lack of ridership caused by
3425-551: A some other interurban rail cars reached about 145 km/h (90 mph) in commercial traffic. The Red Devils weighed only 22 tons though they could seat 44 passengers. Extensive wind tunnel research – the first in the railway industry – was done before J. G. Brill in 1931 built the Bullet cars for Philadelphia and Western Railroad (P&W). They were capable of running at 148 km/h (92 mph). Some of them were almost 60 years in service. P&W's Norristown High Speed Line
3562-565: A world record for narrow gauge trains at 145 km/h (90 mph), giving the Odakyu engineers confidence they could safely and reliably build even faster trains at standard gauge. Conventional Japanese railways up until that point had largely been built in the 1,067 mm ( 3 ft 6 in ) Cape gauge , however widening the tracks to standard gauge ( 1,435 mm ( 4 ft 8 + 1 ⁄ 2 in )) would make very high-speed rail much simpler due to improved stability of
3699-518: Is 279.3 km/h (173.5 mph). This record was surpassed on 26 December 2009 by the new Wuhan–Guangzhou high-speed railway in China where the fastest scheduled train covered 922 km (573 mi) at an average speed of 312.54 km/h (194.20 mph). A Eurostar (TGV) train broke the record for the longest non-stop high-speed international journey on 17 May 2006 carrying the cast and filmmakers of The Da Vinci Code from London to Cannes for
3836-497: Is a 333-kilometre-long (207 mi) French high-speed rail line that connects Paris with the HSL 1 at the Belgium–France border and the Channel Tunnel. It opened in 1993. Of all French high-speed lines, LGV Nord sees the widest variety of high-speed rolling stock and is quite busy; a proposed cut-off bypassing Lille , which would reduce Eurostar journey times between Paris and London, is called LGV Picardie . The Channel Tunnel
3973-512: Is a member of Railteam , a marketing alliance formed in July 2007 of seven European high-speed rail operators. The alliance plans to allow tickets to be booked from one end of Europe to the other on a single website. In June 2009 London and Continental Railways, and the Eurostar UK operations they held ownership of, became fully nationalised by the UK government. In September 2024, Eurostar signed
4110-466: Is a set of unique features, not merely a train travelling above a particular speed. Many conventionally hauled trains are able to reach 200 km/h (124 mph) in commercial service but are not considered to be high-speed trains. These include the French SNCF Intercités and German DB IC . The criterion of 200 km/h (124 mph) is selected for several reasons; above this speed,
4247-459: Is a type of rail transport network utilizing trains that run significantly faster than those of traditional rail, using an integrated system of specialized rolling stock and dedicated tracks . While there is no single standard that applies worldwide, lines built to handle speeds above 250 km/h (155 mph) or upgraded lines in excess of 200 km/h (125 mph) are widely considered to be high-speed. The first high-speed rail system,
TGV - Misplaced Pages Continue
4384-419: Is needed to split carriages, by lifting up cars off a bogie. Once uncoupled, one of the carriage ends is left without support, so a specialized frame is required. SNCF prefers to use power cars instead of electric multiple units because it allows for less electrical equipment. There are six types of TGV equipment in use, all built by Alstom : Retired sets: Several TGV types have broken records, including
4521-419: Is now available for a flat-rate supplement, currently £5.50. Eurostar offers a through-ticket to specific destinations by train, that is a single contract for multi leg journeys with certain passenger rights and protections. Eurostar has announced several partnerships with other rail services, most notably Thalys connections at Lille and Brussels for passengers to go beyond current Eurostar routes towards
4658-593: Is part of Eurostar's marketing drive to attract more business professionals. Increasingly, business people in a group have been chartering private carriages as opposed to individual seats on the train. Without the operation of Regional Eurostar services using the North of London trainsets across the rest of Britain, Eurostar has developed its connections with other transport services instead, such as integrating effectively with traditional UK rail operators' schedules and routes, making it possible for passengers to use Eurostar as
4795-526: Is still in use, almost 110 years after P&W in 1907 opened their double-track Upper Darby–Strafford line without a single grade crossing with roads or other railways. The entire line was governed by an absolute block signal system. On 15 May 1933, the Deutsche Reichsbahn-Gesellschaft company introduced the diesel-powered " Fliegender Hamburger " in regular service between Hamburg and Berlin (286 km or 178 mi), thereby achieving
4932-565: Is the only rail connection between Great Britain and the European mainland. It joins LGV Nord in France with High Speed 1 in Britain. Tunnelling began in 1988, and the 50.5 km (31.4-mile) tunnel was officially opened by British sovereign, Elizabeth II , and the French President, François Mitterrand , on 6 May 1994. It is owned by Getlink , which charges a toll to Eurostar for its use. Within
5069-511: Is very complex, being distributed through no fewer than 48 individual sales systems. Eurostar is a member of the Amadeus CRS distribution system, making its tickets available alongside those of airlines worldwide. Eurostar has two sub-classes of first class : Standard Premier and Business Premier; benefits include guaranteed faster checking-in and meals served at-seat, as well as the improved furnishings and interior of carriages. The rebranding
5206-599: The Chicago-New York Electric Air Line Railroad project to reduce the running time between the two big cities to ten hours by using electric 160 km/h (99 mph) locomotives. After seven years of effort, however, less than 50 km (31 mi) of arrow-straight track was finished. A part of the line is still used as one of the last interurbans in the US. In the US, some of the interurbans (i.e. trams or streetcars which run from city to city) of
5343-548: The 0 Series Shinkansen , built by Kawasaki Heavy Industries – in English often called "Bullet Trains", after the original Japanese name Dangan Ressha ( 弾丸列車 ) – outclassed the earlier fast trains in commercial service. They traversed the 515 km (320 mi) distance in 3 hours 10 minutes, reaching a top speed of 210 km/h (130 mph) and sustaining an average speed of 162.8 km/h (101.2 mph) with stops at Nagoya and Kyoto. Speed
5480-501: The 1973 oil crisis . In 1976 the SNCF ordered 87 high-speed trains from Alstom . Following the inaugural service between Paris and Lyon in 1981 on the LGV Sud-Est , the network, centred on Paris, has expanded to connect major cities across France, including Marseille , Lille , Bordeaux , Strasbourg , Rennes and Montpellier , as well as in neighbouring countries on a combination of high-speed and conventional lines. The success of
5617-640: The Ariane 1 rocket and Concorde supersonic airliner; sponsored by the Government of France , those funding programmes were known as champion national (" national champion ") policies. In 2023 the TGV network in France carried 122 million passengers. The state-owned SNCF started working on a high-speed rail network in 1966. It presented the project to President Georges Pompidou in 1974 who approved it. Originally designed as turbotrains to be powered by gas turbines , TGV prototypes evolved into electric trains with
TGV - Misplaced Pages Continue
5754-663: The Aérotrain , a French hovercraft monorail train prototype, reached 200 km/h (120 mph) within days of operation. After the successful introduction of the Japanese Shinkansen in 1964, at 210 km/h (130 mph), the German demonstrations up to 200 km/h (120 mph) in 1965, and the proof-of-concept jet-powered Aérotrain , SNCF ran its fastest trains at 160 km/h (99 mph). In 1966, French Infrastructure Minister Edgard Pisani consulted engineers and gave
5891-455: The COVID-19 pandemic led to Eurostar seeking governmental assistance from Britain's Treasury and Department for Transport , even though Britain sold its 40% Eurostar holding in 2015. Eurostar's appeal included granting the company access to Bank of England -backed loans and a temporary reduction in track access charges for use of the UK's high-speed rail line. Despite being majority-owned by
6028-420: The COVID-19 pandemic . Since 14 November 2007, all Eurostar trains have been routed via High Speed 1 to or from the redeveloped London terminus at London St Pancras International, which at a cost of £800 million was extensively rebuilt and extended to cope with 394 m (431-yard) long Eurostar trains. It had been intended to retain some Eurostar services at Waterloo International , but this
6165-472: The Cannes Film Festival . The 1,421-kilometre (883 mi) journey took 7 hours 25 minutes on an average speed of 191.6 km/h (119.1 mph). The fastest single long-distance run on the TGV was done by a TGV Réseau train from Calais-Frethun to Marseille (1,067.2 km (663.1 mi)i) in 3 hours 29 minutes at a speed of 306 km/h (190 mph) for the inauguration of
6302-449: The German border. 56 km (35 mi) long (42 km (26 mi) dedicated high-speed tracks, 14 km (8.7 mi) modernised lines), it was completed on 15 December 2007, but trains did not start to use it until June 14, 2009. HSL 3 is used by international Eurostar and ICE trains only. The Cologne–Aachen high-speed line is not a newly built railway line, but a project to upgrade the existing railway line which
6439-689: The Jacobs bogies . The first Réseau (Network) sets entered service in 1993. Fifty bi-current sets were ordered in 1990, supplemented by 40 tri-current sets in 1992/1993 (adding 3,000 V DC system used on traditional lines in Belgum). Ten tri-current sets carry the Eurostar Red (ex- Thalys ) livery and are known as the PBA (Paris-Brussels-Amsterdam) sets. They are formed of two power cars (8,800 kW under 25 kV – as TGV Atlantique) and eight carriages, giving
6576-534: The LGV Méditerranée on 26 May 2001. On 28 November 2003, the TGV network carried its one billionth passenger, a distant second only to the Shinkansen's five billionth passenger in 2000. Excluding international traffic, the TGV system carried 98 million passengers during 2008, an increase of 8 million (9.1%) on the previous year. All TGV trains have two power cars , one on each end. Between those power cars are
6713-574: The Marienfelde – Zossen line during 1902 and 1903 (see Experimental three-phase railcar ). On 23 October 1903, the S&;H-equipped railcar achieved a speed of 206.7 km/h (128.4 mph) and on 27 October the AEG-equipped railcar achieved 210.2 km/h (130.6 mph). These trains demonstrated the feasibility of electric high-speed rail; however, regularly scheduled electric high-speed rail travel
6850-624: The Morning Hiawatha service, hauled at 160 km/h (99 mph) by steam locomotives. In 1939, the largest railroad of the world, the Pennsylvania Railroad introduced a duplex steam engine Class S1 , which was designed to be capable of hauling 1200 tons passenger trains at 161 km/h (100 mph). The S1 engine was assigned to power the popular all-coach overnight premier train the Trail Blazer between New York and Chicago since
6987-540: The Prussian state railway joined with ten electrical and engineering firms and electrified 72 km (45 mi) of military owned railway between Marienfelde and Zossen . The line used three-phase current at 10 kilovolts and 45 Hz . The Van der Zypen & Charlier company of Deutz, Cologne built two railcars, one fitted with electrical equipment from Siemens-Halske , the second with equipment from Allgemeine Elektrizitäts-Gesellschaft (AEG), that were tested on
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#17328451867617124-546: The Shijiazhuang to Zhengzhou segment of China's Shijiazhuang–Wuhan high-speed railway . During the engineering phase, the Transmission Voie-Machine (TVM) cab-signalling technology was developed, as drivers would not be able to see signals along the track-side when trains reach full speed. It allows for a train engaging in an emergency braking to request within seconds all following trains to reduce their speed; if
7261-715: The Tōkaidō Shinkansen , began operations in Honshu , Japan, in 1964. Due to the streamlined spitzer -shaped nose cone of the trains , the system also became known by its English nickname bullet train . Japan's example was followed by several European countries, initially in Italy with the Direttissima line, followed shortly thereafter by France , Germany , and Spain . Today, much of Europe has an extensive network with numerous international connections. More recent construction since
7398-518: The United Kingdom , the United States , and Uzbekistan . Only in continental Europe and Asia does high-speed rail cross international borders. High-speed trains mostly operate on standard gauge tracks of continuously welded rail on grade-separated rights of way with large radii . However, certain regions with wider legacy railways , including Russia and Uzbekistan, have sought to develop
7535-1167: The V150 and TGV 001 . V150 was a specially modified five-car double-deck trainset that reached 574.8 km/h (357.2 mph) under controlled conditions on a test run. It narrowly missed beating the world train speed record of 581 km/h (361 mph). The record-breaking speed is impractical for commercial trains due to motor overcharging, empty train weight, rail and engine wear issues, elimination of all but three coaches, excessive vibration, noise and lack of emergency stopping methods . TGVs travel at up to 320 km/h (199 mph) in commercial use. All TGVs are at least bi-current , which means that they can operate at 25 kV 50 Hz AC (used on LGVs) and 1,500 V DC (used on traditional lines). Trains travelling internationally must accommodate other voltages ( 15 kV 16.7 Hz AC or 3,000 V DC ), requiring tri-current and quad-current TGVs. Each TGV power car has two pantographs: one for AC use and one for DC. When passing between areas with different electric systems (identified by marker boards), trains enter
7672-528: The West Coast Main Line and Leeds and Glasgow Central via Edinburgh Waverley , Newcastle and York on the East Coast Main Line . Seven 14-coach "North of London" Eurostar trains for these Regional Eurostar services were built, but these services never came to fruition. Predicted journey times of almost nine hours for Glasgow to Paris at the time of growth of low-cost air travel during
7809-468: The World Bank , whilst supporting the project, considered the design of the equipment as unproven for that speed, and set the maximum speed to 210 km/h (130 mph). After initial feasibility tests, the plan was fast-tracked and construction of the first section of the line started on 20 April 1959. In 1963, on the new track, test runs hit a top speed of 256 km/h (159 mph). Five years after
7946-533: The 1990s made the plans commercially unviable against the cheaper and quicker airlines. Other reasons that have been suggested for these services having never been run were both government policies and the disruptive privatisation of British Rail . Three of the Regional Eurostar units were leased by Great North Eastern Railway (GNER) to increase domestic services from London King's Cross to York and later Leeds. The lease expired in December 2005, and most of
8083-567: The 21st century has led to China taking a leading role in high-speed rail. As of 2023 , China's HSR network accounted for over two-thirds of the world's total. In addition to these, many other countries have developed high-speed rail infrastructure to connect major cities, including: Austria , Belgium , Denmark , Finland , Greece , Indonesia , Morocco , the Netherlands , Norway , Poland , Portugal , Russia , Saudi Arabia , Serbia , South Korea , Sweden , Switzerland , Taiwan , Turkey ,
8220-577: The Channel Tunnel Rail Link (CTRL), is a 108 km-long (67 mi) British high-speed rail line that connects London with the Channel Tunnel. It opened in two stages. The first section between the tunnel and north Kent opened in September 2003, cutting journey times by 21 minutes. On 14 November 2007, commercial services began over the whole of the High Speed 1 reducing journey times by
8357-575: The Channel Tunnel, Eurostar trains operate at a reduced speed of 160 km/h (100 mph) for safety reasons. Since the launch of Eurostar services, severe disruptions and cancellations have been caused by fires breaking out within the Channel Tunnel, such as in 1996 and 2008 . HSL 1 connects Brussels with the French border. 88 km (55 mi) long (71 km (44 mi) dedicated high-speed tracks, 17 km (11 mi) modernised lines), it began service on 14 December 1997. The line has appreciably shortened rail journeys,
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#17328451867618494-550: The Dutch Minister of Infrastructure and Water Management , Cora van Nieuwenhuizen , and the UK Transport Secretary , Grant Shapps , announced that juxtaposed controls would be established at Amsterdam Centraal and Rotterdam Centraal. The direct train from Amsterdam was originally due to launch on 30 April 2020, and from Rotterdam on 18 May 2020, although it was later postponed to 26 October 2020 for both cities due to
8631-629: The French National Railway started to receive their new powerful CC 7100 electric locomotives, and began to study and evaluate running at higher speeds. In 1954, the CC 7121 hauling a full train achieved a record 243 km/h (151 mph) during a test on standard track. The next year, two specially tuned electric locomotives, the CC 7107 and the prototype BB 9004, broke previous speed records, reaching respectively 320 km/h (200 mph) and 331 km/h (206 mph), again on standard track. For
8768-552: The French National Railways twelve months to raise speeds to 200 km/h (120 mph). The classic line Paris– Toulouse was chosen, and fitted, to support 200 km/h (120 mph) rather than 140 km/h (87 mph). Some improvements were set, notably the signals system, development of on board "in-cab" signalling system, and curve revision. The next year, in May 1967, a regular service at 200 km/h (120 mph)
8905-506: The French state railway, SNCF , Eurostar was thought to have already exhausted options for governmental assistance from Paris, but both the French transport minister and the UK Department for Transport confirmed they were working on further plans to maintain the service. By the end of 2022, Eurostar had debts of €964m, following French bailouts and commercial loans. Ridership levels returned to around 8 million in 2022, however this figure
9042-467: The LGV Atlantique before its opening. Modifications such as improved aerodynamics , larger wheels and improved braking were made to enable speeds of over 500 km/h (311 mph). The set was reduced to two power cars and three carriages to improve the power-to-weight ratio, weighing 250 tonnes. Three carriages, including the bar carriage in the centre, is the minimum possible configuration because of
9179-602: The LGV Atlantique, the Réseau sets are now pressure-sealed. They can be coupled to a Duplex set. The Duplex was built to increase TGV capacity without increasing train length or the number of trains. Each carriage has two levels, with access doors at the lower level taking advantage of low French platforms . A staircase gives access to the upper level, where the gangway between carriages is located. There are 512 seats per set. On busy routes such as Paris-Marseille they are operated in pairs, providing 1,024 seats in two Duplex sets or 800 in
9316-580: The Netherlands (former Thalys ), as well as to the United Kingdom ( Eurostar ). Several future lines are under construction or planned, including extensions within France and to surrounding countries. The Mont d'Ambin Base Tunnel , part of the LGV Lyon–Turin that is currently under construction, is set to become the longest rail tunnel in the world. Cities such as Tours and Le Mans have become part of
9453-541: The Netherlands and Germany. In 2002, Eurostar initiated the Eurostar-Plus program, offering through-tickets for onward journeys from Lille and Paris to dozens of destinations in France. Through-tickets are also available from 68 British towns and cities to destinations in France and Belgium. In May 2009 Eurostar announced that a formal connection to Switzerland had been established in a partnership between Eurostar and Lyria , which will operate TGV services from Lille to
9590-577: The Netherlands and the United Kingdom. The service is operated by the Eurostar Group which was formed from the merger of Eurostar, which operated trains through the Channel Tunnel to the United Kingdom, and Thalys which operated in Western Europe. The operator is exploring future network expansions and aims to double passenger numbers by 2030. The history of the Eurostar brand can be traced to
9727-466: The North of London sets were transferred to SNCF for TGV services in northern France. An international Nightstar sleeper train was also planned; this would have travelled the same routes as Regional Eurostar, plus the Great Western Main Line to Cardiff Central . These were also deemed commercially unviable, and the scheme was abandoned with no services ever operated. In 2000, the coaches were sold to Via Rail in Canada. On 27 September 2019,
9864-508: The Swiss Alps for Eurostar connection. In May 2019, Eurostar ended its agreement with Deutsche Bahn that allowed passengers to travel on a through-ticket by train from the UK via Brussels to Germany and further to Austria and Switzerland. Under the agreement, passengers could travel on a single through-ticket with passenger rights in case of disruption of one train. However, the through-tickets ceased to be sold from 9 November 2019. Eurostar
10001-511: The TGV Réseau sets they supplement. The bi-current power cars provide 8,800 kW, and they have a slightly increased speed of 320 km/h (199 mph). Duplex TGVs run on all of French high-speed lines. TGV POS (Paris-Ostfrankreich-Süddeutschland or Paris-Eastern France-Southern Germany) are used on the LGV Est. They consist of two Duplex power cars with eight TGV Réseau-type carriages, with
10138-512: The TGV network. The idea of the TGV was first proposed in the 1960s, after Japan had begun construction of the Shinkansen in 1959. At the time the Government of France favoured new technology, exploring the production of hovercraft and the Aérotrain air-cushion vehicle. Simultaneously, the SNCF began researching high-speed trains on conventional tracks. In 1976, the administration agreed to fund
10275-534: The US, 160 km/h (99 mph) in Germany and 125 mph (201 km/h) in Britain. Above those speeds positive train control or the European Train Control System becomes necessary or legally mandatory. National domestic standards may vary from the international ones. Railways were the first form of rapid land transportation and had an effective monopoly on long-distance passenger traffic until
10412-422: The basis of early TGV designs, including the distinctive nose shape of the first power cars. Changing the TGV to electric traction required a significant design overhaul. The first electric prototype, nicknamed Zébulon, was completed in 1974, testing features such as innovative body mounting of motors, pantographs , suspension and braking . Body mounting of motors allowed over 3 tonnes to be eliminated from
10549-508: The beginning of the construction work, in October 1964, just in time for the Olympic Games , the first modern high-speed rail, the Tōkaidō Shinkansen , was opened between the two cities; a 510 km (320 mi) line between Tokyo and Ōsaka. As a result of its speeds, the Shinkansen earned international publicity and praise, and it was dubbed the "bullet train." The first Shinkansen trains,
10686-443: The cancelation of this express train in 1939 has traveled between the two cities in a faster time as of 2018 . In August 2019, the travel time between Dresden-Neustadt and Berlin-Südkreuz was 102 minutes. See Berlin–Dresden railway . Further development allowed the usage of these "Fliegenden Züge" (flying trains) on a rail network across Germany. The "Diesel-Schnelltriebwagen-Netz" (diesel high-speed-vehicle network) had been in
10823-481: The choice in 1986 of a rail tunnel to provide a cross-channel link between Britain and France. A previous attempt to construct a tunnel between the two nations had begun in 1974, but was quickly aborted. Construction began afresh in 1988. Eurotunnel was created to manage and own the tunnel, which was finished in 1993, the official opening taking place on 6 May 1994. In addition to the tunnel's shuttle trains carrying cars and lorries between Folkestone and Calais ,
10960-562: The construction of high-speed rail is more costly than conventional rail and therefore does not always present an economical advantage over conventional speed rail. Multiple definitions for high-speed rail are in use worldwide. The European Union Directive 96/48/EC, Annex 1 (see also Trans-European high-speed rail network ) defines high-speed rail in terms of: The International Union of Railways (UIC) identifies three categories of high-speed rail: A third definition of high-speed and very high-speed rail requires simultaneous fulfilment of
11097-464: The curve radius should be quadrupled; the same was true for the acceleration and braking distances. In 1891 engineer Károly Zipernowsky proposed a high-speed line from Vienna to Budapest for electric railcars at 250 km/h (160 mph). In 1893 Wellington Adams proposed an air-line from Chicago to St. Louis of 252 miles (406 km), at a speed of only 160 km/h (99 mph). Alexander C. Miller had greater ambitions. In 1906, he launched
11234-587: The deputy director Marcel Tessier at the DETE ( SNCF Electric traction study department). JNR engineers returned to Japan with a number of ideas and technologies they would use on their future trains, including alternating current for rail traction, and international standard gauge. In 1957, the engineers at the private Odakyu Electric Railway in Greater Tokyo Area launched the Odakyu 3000 series SE EMU. This EMU set
11371-508: The development of the motor car and airliners in the early-mid 20th century. Speed had always been an important factor for railroads and they constantly tried to achieve higher speeds and decrease journey times. Rail transportation in the late 19th century was not much slower than non-high-speed trains today, and many railroads regularly operated relatively fast express trains which averaged speeds of around 100 km/h (62 mph). High-speed rail development began in Germany in 1899 when
11508-570: The early 20th century were very high-speed for their time (also Europe had and still does have some interurbans). Several high-speed rail technologies have their origin in the interurban field. In 1903 – 30 years before the conventional railways started to streamline their trains – the officials of the Louisiana Purchase Exposition organised the Electric Railway Test Commission to conduct a series of tests to develop
11645-406: The first completed section of High Speed 1 . Following a high-profile glamorous opening ceremony and a large advertising campaign, on 14 November 2007, Eurostar services in London transferred from Waterloo to the extended and extensively refurbished London St Pancras International . Direct services from London to Amsterdam (returning to Brussels only) were launched on 4 April 2018. This service
11782-543: The first high-speed service led to a rapid development of Lignes à Grande Vitesse (LGVs, "high-speed lines") to the south ( Rhône-Alpes , Méditerranée , Nîmes–Montpellier ), west ( Atlantique , Bretagne-Pays de la Loire , Sud Europe Atlantique ), north ( Nord , Interconnexion Est ) and east ( Rhin-Rhône , Est ). Since it was launched, the TGV has not recorded a single passenger fatality in an accident on normal, high-speed service. A specially modified TGV high-speed train known as Project V150 , weighing only 265 tonnes, set
11919-515: The first line. By the mid-1990s, the trains were so popular that SNCF president Louis Gallois declared that the TGV was "the train that saved French railways". It was originally planned that the TGV, then standing for très grande vitesse ("very high speed") or turbine grande vitesse ("high-speed turbine"), would be propelled by gas turbines , selected for their small size, good power-to-weight ratio and ability to deliver high power over an extended period. The first prototype, TGV 001 ,
12056-432: The first production version was delivered on 25 April 1980. The TGV opened to the public between Paris and Lyon on 27 September 1981. Contrary to its earlier fast services, SNCF intended TGV service for all types of passengers, with the same initial ticket price as trains on the parallel conventional line. To counteract the popular misconception that the TGV would be a premium service for business travellers, SNCF started
12193-617: The first section of the "High Speed 1" railway between the Channel Tunnel, and Fawkham Junction in north Kent, two months before official public services began running. On 16 May 2006, Eurostar set a new record for the longest non-stop high-speed journey, a distance of 1,421 km (883 miles) from London to Cannes taking 7 hours 25 minutes. On 4 September 2007, a record-breaking train left Paris Nord at 10:44 (09:44 BST ) and reached London St Pancras International in 2 hours 3 minutes 39 seconds, carrying journalists and railway workers. This record trip
12330-438: The first time, 300 km/h (185 mph) was surpassed, allowing the idea of higher-speed services to be developed and further engineering studies commenced. Especially, during the 1955 records, a dangerous hunting oscillation , the swaying of the bogies which leads to dynamic instability and potential derailment was discovered. This problem was solved by yaw dampers which enabled safe running at high speeds today. Research
12467-477: The first train running on 29 June. The following year saw the introduction of services to the French Alps during the winter. On 20 July 2002 a summer seasonal service to Avignon-Centre was launched. The service ran until 2014 after which it was replaced on 1 May 2015 by an expanded service calling at Avignon TGV and also serving Lyon and Marseille . On 23 September 2003, passenger services began running on
12604-566: The following two conditions: The UIC prefers to use "definitions" (plural) because they consider that there is no single standard definition of high-speed rail, nor even standard usage of the terms ("high speed", or "very high speed"). They make use of the European EC Directive 96/48, stating that high speed is a combination of all the elements which constitute the system: infrastructure, rolling stock and operating conditions. The International Union of Railways states that high-speed rail
12741-490: The heads of two of Eurostar's major shareholders, Guillaume Pepy of SNCF, and the chair of SNCB, Sophie Dutordoir , publicised that Eurostar was planning to come together with its sister company the Franco-Belgian transnational rail service Thalys . The arrangement is to merge their operations under the working title of " Green Speed " and expand services outside the core London-Paris-Brussels-Amsterdam service, to create
12878-414: The impacts of geometric defects are intensified, track adhesion is decreased, aerodynamic resistance is greatly increased, pressure fluctuations within tunnels cause passenger discomfort, and it becomes difficult for drivers to identify trackside signalling. Standard signaling equipment is often limited to speeds below 200 km/h (124 mph), with the traditional limits of 127 km/h (79 mph) in
13015-512: The increased traffic due to the opening of the LGV Rhine-Rhone. They are numbered from 800 and are limited to 320 km/h (199 mph). ERTMS makes them compatible to allow access to Spain similar to Dasye . The design that emerged from the process was named TGV M , and in July 2018 SNCF ordered 100 trainsets with deliveries expected to begin in 2024. They are expected to cost €25 million per 8-car set. TGV technology has been adopted in
13152-461: The initial ones despite greater speeds). After decades of research and successful testing on a 43 km (27 mi) test track, in 2014 JR Central began constructing a Maglev Shinkansen line, which is known as the Chūō Shinkansen . These Maglev trains still have the traditional underlying tracks and the cars have wheels. This serves a practical purpose at stations and a safety purpose out on
13289-571: The journey from Paris to Brussels now taking 1:22. In combination with the LGV Nord , it has also impacted international journeys to France and London . HSL 2 runs between Leuven and Ans . 95 km (59 mi) long (61 km (38 mi) dedicated high-speed tracks, 34 km (21 mi) modernised lines) it began service on 15 December 2002. Combined with HSL 3 to the German border, the combined eastward high speed lines have greatly accelerated journeys between Brussels , Paris and Germany . HSL 3 connects Liège to
13426-436: The large amount of kinetic energy of a train at high speed, high-speed aerodynamics, and signalling. It was articulated, comprising two adjacent carriages sharing a bogie , allowing free yet controlled motion with respect to one another. It reached 318 km/h (198 mph), which remains the world speed record for a non-electric train. Its interior and exterior were styled by French designer Jacques Cooper, whose work formed
13563-534: The late 1940s and it consistently reached 161 km/h (100 mph) in its service life. These were the last "high-speed" trains to use steam power. In 1936, the Twin Cities Zephyr entered service, from Chicago to Minneapolis, with an average speed of 101 km/h (63 mph). Many of these streamliners posted travel times comparable to or even better than their modern Amtrak successors, which are limited to 127 km/h (79 mph) top speed on most of
13700-432: The lines in the event of a power failure. However, in normal operation, the wheels are raised up into the car as the train reaches certain speeds where the magnetic levitation effect takes over. It will link Tokyo and Osaka by 2037, with the section from Tokyo to Nagoya expected to be operational by 2027. Maximum speed is anticipated at 505 km/h (314 mph). The first generation train can be ridden by tourists visiting
13837-476: The merger between Thalys and Eurostar International was confirmed, a year after Thalys announced its intention to merge with the cross-Channel provider subject to gaining European Commission clearance, to form "Green Speed". SNCF and SNCB already hold a controlling shareholding in Eurostar. In October 2021, it was announced that, following the completion of the merger, the Thalys brand would be discontinued, with all of
13974-501: The network. The German high-speed service was followed in Italy in 1938 with an electric-multiple-unit ETR 200 , designed for 200 km/h (120 mph), between Bologna and Naples. It too reached 160 km/h (99 mph) in commercial service, and achieved a world mean speed record of 203 km/h (126 mph) between Florence and Milan in 1938. In Great Britain in the same year, the streamlined steam locomotive Mallard achieved
14111-406: The new operation's services to be operated under the Eurostar name but with each service's own liveries. In October 2023, the Eurostar brand replaced Thalys , operating as one network and combining ticket sales in a single system. Eurostar was originally operated as a collaboration of three separate French, British and Belgian corporate entities. On 1 September 2010, Eurostar was incorporated as
14248-492: The noses of the power cars. The articulated design is advantageous during a derailment, as the passenger carriages are more likely to stay upright and in line with the track. Normal trains could split at couplings and jackknife, as seen in the Eschede train disaster . A disadvantage is that it is difficult to split sets of carriages. While power cars can be removed from trains by standard uncoupling procedures, specialized equipment
14385-469: The official world speed record for steam locomotives at 202.58 km/h (125.88 mph). The external combustion engines and boilers on steam locomotives were large, heavy and time and labor-intensive to maintain, and the days of steam for high speed were numbered. In 1945, a Spanish engineer, Alejandro Goicoechea , developed a streamlined, articulated train that was able to run on existing tracks at higher speeds than contemporary passenger trains. This
14522-502: The opening of the LGV Méditerranée. The few sets that kept a maximum speed of 270 km/h (168 mph) operated on routes that include a comparatively short distance on LGV, such as to Switzerland via Dijon; SNCF did not consider it financially worthwhile to upgrade their speed for a marginal reduction in journey time. In December 2019, the trains were phased out from service. In late 2019 and early 2020, TGV 01 (Nicknamed Patrick),
14659-591: The planning since 1934 but it never reached its envisaged size. All high-speed service stopped in August 1939 shortly before the outbreak of World War II . On 26 May 1934, one year after Fliegender Hamburger introduction, the Burlington Railroad set an average speed record on long distance with their new streamlined train, the Zephyr , at 124 km/h (77 mph) with peaks at 185 km/h (115 mph). The Zephyr
14796-524: The power cars and greatly reduced the unsprung weight . The prototype travelled almost 1,000,000 km (621,371 mi) during testing. In 1976, the French administration funded the TGV project, and construction of the LGV Sud-Est , the first high-speed line (French: ligne à grande vitesse ), began shortly afterwards. The line was given the designation LN1, Ligne Nouvelle 1 ("New Line 1"). After two pre-production trainsets (nicknamed Patrick and Sophie ) had been tested and substantially modified,
14933-786: The public welcoming fast and practical travel. The Eurostar service began operation in 1994, connecting continental Europe to London via the Channel Tunnel and the LGV Nord-Europe with a version of the TGV designed for use in the tunnel and the United Kingdom. The first phase of the British High Speed 1 line was completed in 2003, the second phase in November 2007. The fastest trains take 2 hours 15 minutes London–Paris and 1 hour 51 minutes London–Brussels. The first twice-daily London-Amsterdam service ran 3 April 2018, and took 3 hours 47 minutes. The TGV (1981)
15070-550: The same length as TGVs could have up to 450 seats. The target speed is 360 kilometres per hour (224 mph). The prototype AGV was unveiled by Alstom on 5 February 2008. Italian operator NTV is the first customer for the AGV, and became the first open-access high-speed rail operator in Europe, starting operation in 2011. The design process of the next generation of TGVs began in 2016 when SNCF and Alstom signed an agreement to jointly develop
15207-519: The test track. China is developing two separate high-speed maglev systems. In Europe, high-speed rail began during the International Transport Fair in Munich in June 1965, when Dr Öpfering, the director of Deutsche Bundesbahn (German Federal Railways), performed 347 demonstrations at 200 km/h (120 mph) between Munich and Augsburg by DB Class 103 hauled trains. The same year
15344-428: The trainsets, with goals of reducing purchase and operating costs, as well as improved interior design. In June 2021, there were approximately 2,800 km (1,740 mi) of Lignes à Grande Vitesse (LGV), with four additional line sections under construction. The current lines and those under construction can be grouped into four routes radiating from Paris. High-speed rail High-speed rail ( HSR )
15481-493: The tunnel opened up the possibility of through passenger and freight train services between places further afield. British Rail and France's SNCF contracted with Eurotunnel to use half the tunnel's capacity for this purpose. In 1987, Britain, France and Belgium set up an International Project Group to specify a train to provide an international high-speed passenger service through the tunnel. France had been operating high-speed TGV services since 1981, and had begun construction of
15618-524: The very first TGV train, did a farewell service that included all three liveries that were worn during their service. The 105 train Atlantique fleet was built between 1988 and 1992 for the opening of the LGV Atlantique and entry into service began in 1989. They are all bi-current, 237.5 m (779 ft 2 in) long and 2.9 m (9 ft 6 in) wide. They weigh 444 tonnes (979,000 lb) and are made up of two power cars and ten carriages with
15755-540: The wider rail gauge, and thus standard gauge was adopted for high-speed service. With the sole exceptions of Russia, Finland, and Uzbekistan all high-speed rail lines in the world are still standard gauge, even in countries where the preferred gauge for legacy lines is different. The new service, named Shinkansen (meaning new main line ) would provide a new alignment, 25% wider standard gauge utilising continuously welded rails between Tokyo and Osaka with new rolling stock, designed for 250 km/h (160 mph). However,
15892-523: The world record for the fastest wheeled train, reaching 574.8 km/h (357.2 mph) during a test run on 3 April 2007. In 2007, the world's fastest scheduled rail journey was a start-to-stop average speed of 279.4 km/h (173.6 mph) between the Gare de Champagne-Ardenne and Gare de Lorraine on the LGV Est , not surpassed until the 2013 reported average of 283.7 km/h (176.3 mph) express service on
16029-629: The world's population, without a single train passenger fatality. (Suicides, passengers falling off the platforms, and industrial accidents have resulted in fatalities.) Since their introduction, Japan's Shinkansen systems have been undergoing constant improvement, not only increasing line speeds. Over a dozen train models have been produced, addressing diverse issues such as tunnel boom noise, vibration, aerodynamic drag , lines with lower patronage ("Mini shinkansen"), earthquake and typhoon safety, braking distance , problems due to snow, and energy consumption (newer trains are twice as energy-efficient as
16166-465: Was achieved by providing the locomotive and cars with a unique axle system that used one axle set per car end, connected by a Y-bar coupler. Amongst other advantages, the centre of mass was only half as high as usual. This system became famous under the name of Talgo ( Tren Articulado Ligero Goicoechea Oriol ), and for half a century was the main Spanish provider of high-speed trains. In the early 1950s,
16303-519: Was also made about "current harnessing" at high-speed by the pantographs, which was solved 20 years later by the Zébulon TGV 's prototype. With some 45 million people living in the densely populated Tokyo– Osaka corridor, congestion on road and rail became a serious problem after World War II , and the Japanese government began thinking about ways to transport people in and between cities. Because Japan
16440-410: Was also the first passenger-carrying arrival at the new London St Pancras International station. On 20 September 2007, Eurostar broke another record when it completed the journey from Brussels to London in 1 hour 43 minutes. The original proposals for Eurostar included direct services to Paris and Brussels from cities north of London: Manchester Piccadilly via Birmingham New Street on
16577-650: Was an offer of £50-day returns from London to Paris or Brussels. By March 2003, the cheapest fare from the UK was £59 return, available all year around. In June 2009 it was announced that one-way single fares would be available at £31 at the cheapest. Competition between Eurostar and airline services was a large factor in ticket prices being reduced from the initial levels. Business Premier fares also slightly undercut air fares on similar routes, targeted at regular business travellers. In 2009, Eurostar greatly increased its budget ticket availability to help maintain and grow its dominant market share. The Eurostar ticketing system
16714-494: Was boosted to 31 kV, and extra ballast was tamped onto the permanent way. The train beat the 1990 world speed record of 515.3 km/h (320.2 mph), set by a similarly TGV, along with unofficial records set during weeks preceding the official record run. The test was part of an extensive research programme by Alstom. In 2007, the TGV was the world's fastest conventional scheduled train : one journey's average start-to-stop speed from Champagne-Ardenne Station to Lorraine Station
16851-582: Was built between 1978 and 1988 and operated the first TGV service, from Paris to Lyon in 1981. There were 107 passenger sets, of which nine are tri-current (including 15 kV 16.7 Hz AC for use in Switzerland) and the rest bi-current. There were seven bi-current half-sets without seats that carried mail for La Poste between Paris, Lyon and Provence , in a distinctive yellow livery until they were phased out in 2015. Each set were made up of two power cars and eight carriages (capacity 345 seats), including
16988-425: Was confirmed as withdrawn in August 2023, and its future is unknown. In February 2018, Eurostar announced the start of its long-planned service from London to Amsterdam, with an initial two trains per day from April of that year running between London St Pancras International and Amsterdam Centraal . This launched as a one-way service, with return trains carrying passengers to Rotterdam and Brussels Midi/Zuid, making
17125-403: Was extended a further 161 km (100 mi), and further construction has resulted in the network expanding to 2,951 km (1,834 mi) of high speed lines as of 2024, with a further 211 km (131 mi) of extensions currently under construction and due to open in 2031. The cumulative patronage on the entire system since 1964 is over 10 billion, the equivalent of approximately 140% of
17262-456: Was inaugurated by the TEE Le Capitole between Paris and Toulouse , with specially adapted SNCF Class BB 9200 locomotives hauling classic UIC cars, and a full red livery. It averaged 119 km/h (74 mph) over the 713 km (443 mi). Eurostar Eurostar is an international high-speed rail service in Western Europe, connecting Belgium, France, Germany,
17399-524: Was made a return service on 26 October 2020. The Channel Tunnel used by Eurostar services holds the record for having the longest underwater section of any tunnel in the world, and it is the third-longest railway tunnel (behind the Seikan Tunnel and the Gotthard Base Tunnel ) in the world. On 30 July 2003, a Eurostar train set a new British speed record of 334.7 km/h (208.0 mph) on
17536-527: Was made of stainless steel and, like the Fliegender Hamburger, was diesel powered, articulated with Jacobs bogies , and could reach 160 km/h (99 mph) as commercial speed. The new service was inaugurated 11 November 1934, traveling between Kansas City and Lincoln , but at a lower speed than the record, on average speed 74 km/h (46 mph). In 1935, the Milwaukee Road introduced
17673-407: Was not only a part of the Shinkansen revolution: the Shinkansen offered high-speed rail travel to the masses. The first Bullet trains had 12 cars and later versions had up to 16, and double-deck trains further increased the capacity. After three years, more than 100 million passengers had used the trains, and the milestone of the first one billion passengers was reached in 1976. In 1972, the line
17810-555: Was opened in 1841 by the Rhenish Railway Company . The line inside Germany has a length of about 70 kilometres (43 mi). The first 40 km (25 mi) from Cologne to Düren have been rebuilt. Since 2002 the line allows for speeds up to 250 km/h (155 mph). Separate tracks have been built parallel to the high-speed tracks for local S-Bahn traffic. The remaining line from Düren to Aachen allows speeds up to 160 km/h (100 mph) with some slower sections. High Speed 1, formerly known as
17947-468: Was resource limited and did not want to import petroleum for security reasons, energy-efficient high-speed rail was an attractive potential solution. Japanese National Railways (JNR) engineers began to study the development of a high-speed regular mass transit service. In 1955, they were present at the Lille 's Electrotechnology Congress in France, and during a 6-month visit, the head engineer of JNR accompanied
18084-436: Was ruled out on cost grounds. Completion of High Speed 1 increased the potential number of trains serving London. Separation of Eurostar from British domestic services through Kent meant that timetabling was no longer affected by peak-hour restrictions. Eurostar's fares were significantly higher in its early years; the cheapest fare in 1994 was £99 return. In 2002, Eurostar was planning cheaper fares, an example of which
18221-522: Was still 3 million below 2019 levels. Since the COVID-19 pandemic, Eurostar has not served the Ashford International or Ebbsfleet International stations in the UK, or Calais Frethun in France, and has withdrawn its Disneyland Paris and Avignon services, as part of plans to focus on the most profitable routes. The LGV Nord ( French : Ligne à Grande Vitesse Nord , English: north high-speed line )
18358-402: Was still more than 30 years away. After the breakthrough of electric railroads, it was clearly the infrastructure – especially the cost of it – which hampered the introduction of high-speed rail. Several disasters happened – derailments, head-on collisions on single-track lines, collisions with road traffic at grade crossings, etc. The physical laws were well-known, i.e. if the speed was doubled,
18495-426: Was the only gas-turbine TGV: following the increase in the price of oil during the 1973 energy crisis , gas turbines were deemed uneconomic and the project turned to electricity from overhead lines , generated by new nuclear power stations . TGV 001 was not a wasted prototype: its gas turbine was only one of its many new technologies for high-speed rail travel. It also tested high-speed brakes, needed to dissipate
18632-454: Was the world's second commercial and the fastest standard gauge high-speed train service, after Japan's Shinkansen , which connected Tokyo and Osaka from 1 October 1964. It was a commercial success. A TGV test train holds the world speed record for conventional trains. On 3 April 2007 a modified TGV POS train reached 574.8 km/h (357.2 mph) under test conditions on the LGV Est between Paris and Strasbourg. The line voltage
18769-471: Was too heavy for much of the tracks, so Cincinnati Car Company , J. G. Brill and others pioneered lightweight constructions, use of aluminium alloys, and low-level bogies which could operate smoothly at extremely high speeds on rough interurban tracks. Westinghouse and General Electric designed motors compact enough to be mounted on the bogies. From 1930 on, the Red Devils from Cincinnati Car Company and
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