SL X60

X60 is the designation of Greater Stockholm Transport's (SL) new Coradia Nordic-model commuter trains, which as of 2006 are gradually replacing the older commuter trainsets.

Background

The original cars for the Stockholm commuter rail service, called X1, were delivered between 1967 and 1975. A batch of new cars, designated X10, were delivered between 1983 and 1993. These two sets of cars made up the backbone of the fleet from 1967 until 2005. As time went on and passengers demanded more comfortable travel and more features, SL came to realize that it was time to replace the older stock completely.

In 2002, SL ordered 55 cars, with an option for 50 more, from the French manufacturer Alstom. The price for the first 55 cars is about SEK 4 billion.

Delivery of the X60 began in 2005, and as of 2006 the initial order of 55 cars was expected to be completed in the spring of 2007. The X60 cars are replacing the older stock as they are delivered. Service with the X60 was inaugurated 13 August 2005 at Stockholm Central Station.

The trains are manufactured in Salzgitter in Germany.

Safety and comfort

Each car is 107 metres (351 feet) long and consists of six articulated portions. Each car can seat 374 and take 530 standees. Two such cars coupled together make up a full-length train. It is easy to go through the entire car to find an empty seat, or to move if one part of the car is crowded, and the design also provides visibility through the length of the car, which SL's passenger surveys found was important in order to help passengers feel safe. SL has also specified lower backrests in the X60 to improve visibility all the way through the car.

Boarding and alighting from the new train is intended to be much easier than doing so on the older commuter train stock. At each door, and in 92% of each car, the floor is at the same level as the station platforms. This means a significant quality improvement for all passengers but particularly for the mobility-impaired.

X60 interior

The actual technical parameters include 92% of the total floor space of each car having a floor height of 760 mm (30 in) rising to 830 mm (33 in) at the gangways, and a maximum floorheight anywhere in the wagons of 1,080 mm (43 in). The trains can travel at speeds of up to 160 km/h (99 mph) although they are only actually used at speeds of up to 140 km/h (87 mph) in Stockholm - a speed of 80 km/h (50 mph) is reached within 20 seconds. The trains have a width of 3.258 m (10 ft 8.3 in) and a height of 4.280 m (14 ft 0.5 in) above TOR, and a full length of 107.1 m (351 ft).^[1]

The train is built in accord with the new nominal platform height of 800 millimetres (31 in) specified for Stockholm commuter trains, higher than the normal Swedish Railway Administration's standard of 500 millimetres (20 in). Passengers notice a significant improvement in the form of a much lower floor height compared to the earlier stock, making boarding and alighting much easier than before.

In each car there are "flexible areas" that have room for wheelchairs, baby carriages and bicycles.

Another new feature is that the trains are equipped with air conditioning in both the passenger and cab areas. The seats have been designed in collaboration with leading ergonomists and representatives for SL passengers.

All cars have security cameras installed, just like the new Stockholm metro cars; this can contribute to increased security. Naturally, other safety details have also been carefully worked out, not least fire safety, with the use of non-inflammable and self-extinguishing materials.

• 
  X60-6009+6069 arrival at Stockholm Central Station
• 
  X60-6060+6019 on Centralbron

Higher environmental standards

High environmental standards have shaped the choice of materials in the new commuter trains. 95% of a car can be recycled when they are ready to be scrapped.

When the trains brake, the 3-phase motors act as generators and return electricity to the system rather than converting power to heat, as on a friction brake system. The current that is produced is conducted back to the overhead lines. If there is another train in the same electrical section, this train will use as much of the generated energy as it can.

The trains are designed and built for Swedish weather conditions; This is done by utilizing the roof space for the traction /air supply and auxiliary power converters, rather than placing them underneath the unit. This means they suffer less from snow and ice accumulation, and it should be possible to operate them without service disruptions both in heavy snow and in hot summers (X1 and X10 had problems with the heavy snowfall and froze, disabling them seriously). The technical systems in the train are "doubled," i.e. redundancy is provided, using microprocessor control systems, which greatly reduces the risk of service disruptions.

X61

Östgötatrafiken X61 in Nässjö

Skånetrafiken, the regional public transport organisation in Scania (Sweden), operate 49 X61 trainsets, delivered 2009-2011, and ordered an additional 20 trainsets in 2011.^[2] The X61 is based on the X60, but with four cars per set instead of six and a total length of 75 m (246 ft), and are operated both as single trainsets and as longer trains made up of two connected four-car trainsets (and it is also possible to use three connected four-car trainsets to get even longer trains). The interior of the X61 is better suited for the often longer distances covered by regional trains, with toilets (which the SL X60 commuter trains do not have) and more comfortable seats. Östgötatrafiken (the public transport organisation in Östergötland) has bought 5 trains of type X61, delivered in 2010, and has ordered eight more for delivery 2015. Västtrafik (the public transport organisation in Västra Götaland) has bought 22 X61 trains.

X62

Norrtåg X62 trains

Norrtåg (the train ownership company for the public transport organisations in Västerbotten, Västernorrland and neighbour counties) has bought eleven trains of this type for usage in these counties, e.g. on Botniabanan, delivered in 2012. They are called X62 and contain a bistro because of longer travel times, and have a top speed of 180 km/h. Otherwise, they are quite the same as X61 trains and it is also possible to make two or three connected four-car trainsets to get longer trains.

References

• "Order for new commuter trains". SL.se (in Swedish). 
• "About the new commuter trains". SL.se (in Swedish). Archived from the original on October 7, 2006. 
• "The X1". Svenska Spårvägssällskapet. 
• "The X10". Svenska Spårvägssällskapet. 

External links

• Media related to Alstom Coradia Nordic at Wikimedia Commons