Battery-powered electric trains

Siemens battery-electric train

Trains are about to go electric.

Battery-electric, that is. While electrical propulsion has been the preferred way to move trains for most of a century, the idea of moving them longer distances via battery is one that’s just now being realized.

Like long-range electric cars, it’s a reality afforded by the energy density and longevity of modern lithium-ion battery packs.

In Germany, where only about 40 percent of track is electrified, the trains will clean the air along routes that might have been impractical or prohibitively expensive to electrify, the state of Baden-Württemberg has ordered 20 two-car trains built in Germany by Siemens, who will oversee energy consumption and energy costs over a nearly 30-year service period.

It’s the first such order for battery-electric trains for Siemens Mobility, who will deliver them by June 2023. In them, a lithium-ion battery pack is mounted under the train’s floor and is charged while it moves along via overhead lines, using them to both power the train and charge the battery. When the train reaches a stretch of rail with no overhead lines, the battery takes over.

The new trains are part of Siemens’ Mireo train platform for regional and commuter rail—boasting weight reductions and improved aerodynamics. Configurations range from two to seven cars, and top speed, depending on the version, ranges from 87 to 124 mph [140 to 200 kph].

Germany and France are two markets that have started investing in battery-electric trains. Last month another company, Alstom, announced that it has a first contract to supply battery-electric regional trains for Germany’s Leipzig-Chemnitz line with three-car trains that can cover up to 75 miles and reach a top speed of 99 mph.

That same company has tested hydrogen fuel-cell power as the alternate source instead of batteries. And the Canadian company Bombardier in 2018 launched the Talent 3, an electro-hybrid train that can cover up to 62 miles on non-electrified track, with a modular approach to configuring motors and batteries.

[From Green Car Reports.  Here are two related articles: First Order for Mireo Plus B Battery, and Alstom signs first contract for battery-electric trains ]

Unfortunately, none of the articles says how long it takes to charge the batteries, or, put it another way, how many k's the train must travel using the electric catenary for each k of travel under battery power.