Tilting Train Express | |
---|---|
In service | Not in service |
Manufacturer | TTX Consortium |
Built at | Hyundai Rotem Changwon factory |
Family name | Hanvit |
Constructed | 2007 |
Number built | 1 |
Formation | 2M+2T+2M [1] |
Capacity | 278 [1] |
Operators | TTX Consortium |
Lines served | Chungbuk Line, Jungang Line |
Specifications | |
Car body construction | carbon/ epoxy sandwiched aluminium honeycomb |
Car length | 24.50 m (80 ft 5 in) |
Width | 2.95 m (9 ft 8 in) |
Maximum speed | achieved in tests: 222 km/h (138 mph) design: 200 km/h (124 mph) planned in service: 180 km/h (112 mph) |
Weight | 344 t (379 short tons; 339 long tons) [1] |
Power output | 16 × 250 kW (340 hp) (4,000 kW or 5,400 hp) [1] |
Power supply | 25 kV/60 Hz AC |
Electric system(s) | catenary |
Current collector(s) | Single arm pantograph |
UIC classification | Bo'Bo' + Bo'Bo' + 2'2' + 2'2' + Bo'Bo' + Bo'Bo' |
Safety system(s) |
Automatic Train Stop and Automatic Train Protection |
Track gauge | 1,435 mm (4 ft 8+1⁄2 in) standard gauge |
Tilting Train Express (TTX) or Hanvit 200 is a South Korean experimental high-speed tilting train, which is currently[ when?] being tested by the Korea Railroad Research Institute (KRRI).
The six-car train has distributed power and a design speed of 200 km/h (124 mph) and a planned service speed of 180 km/h (112 mph). [1] The carbody is made on an aluminum honeycomb structure sandwiched between a carbon/epoxy composite material, reducing carbody mass by 40%. [1] The interior design of two of the powered cars provides for 29 First Class seats in 2+1 configuration, that of the other two powered cars 56 Standard Class seats in 2+2 configuration, that of unpowered end cars 54 Standard Class seats. [1]
TTX was presented to the public on January 16, 2007, when the first test run was planned for the next month. [2] The actual first test was conducted on April 2, 2007, on the Chungbuk Line. [3]
Following a call by Nam-Hee Chae, the president of the Korea Railroad Research Institute, for proposals for a generic name for Korean-made high-speed trains, [4] on April 5, 2007, Chae announced the name Hanvit ( Hangul: 한빛), [5] which means a streak of intense light in Korean. [6] Under the new naming scheme, TTX became Hanvit 200. [5]
The first test run with active tilting was conducted in the presence of the media on May 22, 2007, between Osong Station and nearby Ogeunjang Station on the Chungbuk Line. [7] At the time, the train was planned to enter service in 2010. [7] Until December 21, 2008, the train ran over 20,000 km (12,000 mi) in test runs on the Chungbuk Line, short of the 100,000 km (62,000 mi) planned. [8] The test program of 100,000 km (62,000 mi) was completed until the end of 2009, with test runs on the Chungbuk, Jungang, Honam, Gyeongbu and Taebaek Lines followed by high-speed testing on the Gyeongbu High Speed Railway (Gyeongbu HSR), with 200 km/h (124 mph) achieved at 00:33 on November 19, 2009, between Osong and Daejeon. [9] In a further test in September 2010 on the not yet opened second stage of the line between Daegu and Busan, the train achieved 222 km/h (138 mph). [10]
By the end of 2009, the series version of the train was expected to enter regular service in 2013, starting on the Jungang Line. [9] The future service is expected to reduce the travel time between Cheongnyangni in Seoul and Yeongju from the current Mugunghwa-ho travel time of 3 hours 25 minutes to 2 hours 55 minutes, further reducing to 1 hour 55 minutes after the upgrade of the Jungang Line. [10] Further services are planned on the Taebaek and Yeongdong Lines. [9]