The future of public transport is battery-powered, baby! While electric buses have been popping up in British cities like Oxford, Manchester or London quite a lot recently, we’ve not heard as much from the world of battery-fuelled trains. But now, one battery-powered locomotive imay have smashed a UK record.
Last week, during tests for its FastCharge battery, a Great Western Railway train travelled 86 miles on battery power alone. That’s a long way without having to stop and charge up.
The whole journey took the train from Long Marston in Warwickshire to Honeybourne in Worcestershire and back again – and GWR claims that it broke the record for the longest battery train distance travelled without recharging.
A few days later it chugged along for 70 miles to GWR’s depot in Reading on just 45 percent of its battery capacity. The FastCharge technology is intended to eliminate the use of diesel fuels and deliver reliable battery-only trains to branch lines. It’s hoped that the use of the tech will get rid of the need for overhead electric lines which can cause a lot of delays from overheating, being hit by debris or becoming faulty.
Dr Simon Green, engineering director at GWR, said: ‘We were delighted by how the battery train performed today and during its series of test runs. In fact, it’s fair to say it has surpassed the expectations of our team of engineers.
‘It’s also worth noting that in reaching the 86 miles on Wednesday, the train was operating in a real-world environment, at speeds of up to 60mph, stopping and starting over a hilly route, with elevation changes of up to 200m.’
Now, the plan is for the train to go to West Ealing in the spring to undergo real-world trials with scheduled passenger services, charging for just three and a half minutes before restarting its journey.
In other train news on Time Out, a brand new service recently launched in Wales and 90 more railway stations around the country will soon trial contactless ticketing. There could also be a brand-new route linking London and the Midlands on the way. Also make sure you keep in the loop with Time Out’s regularly updated guide to rail strikes.
Did you see that locals have just lost their battle to stop the controversial Stonehenge tunnel?
Plus: Britain’s rainiest seaside towns have been revealed.
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