Sprinter Extinction

[Halifaxlad]

Correction - diesel-electric is a critical difference when it comes to the Flirts

Thanks for mentioning that as it reminded me CAF do offer that alongside the usual diesels, electrics and even bi-modes.

CAF-Construcciones y Auxiliar de Ferrocarriles, your railway solutions

CAF est un leader international en matière de conception, fabrication, maintenance et livraison d’équipements et de composants pour systèmes ferroviaires.

www.caf.net

I suspect it also may be easier to convert a diesel-electric to full electric rather than pure diesel.

My preference for the next traction is now heading towards diesel-electric!

 

[Ken H]

Thanks for mentioning that as it reminded me CAF do offer that alongside the usual diesels, electrics and even bi-modes.

CAF-Construcciones y Auxiliar de Ferrocarriles, your railway solutions

CAF est un leader international en matière de conception, fabrication, maintenance et livraison d’équipements et de composants pour systèmes ferroviaires.

www.caf.net

I suspect it also may be easier to convert a diesel-electric to full electric rather than pure diesel.

My preference for the next traction is now heading towards diesel-electric!

What about the weight issue. Isn't diesel electric for MU's heavier than the current sprinter mechanical setup? And more expensive?

 

[RobShipway]

Thanks for mentioning that as it reminded me CAF do offer that alongside the usual diesels, electrics and even bi-modes.

CAF-Construcciones y Auxiliar de Ferrocarriles, your railway solutions

CAF est un leader international en matière de conception, fabrication, maintenance et livraison d’équipements et de composants pour systèmes ferroviaires.

www.caf.net

I suspect it also may be easier to convert a diesel-electric to full electric rather than pure diesel.

My preference for the next traction is now heading towards diesel-electric!

The site https://www.caf.net/en/soluciones/familia/civity/modularidad.php does state the following:

Civity trains with all types of traction can be equipped with batteries. These can be used to move the train without external power supply or to provide extra power to the train when there is a limitation in the catenary power. Batteries can also enable energy storage during braking reducing energy consumption.

CAF energy storage systems are modular and configurable, making them easily adaptable to requirements of each customer.

CAF has battery powered rolling stock in revenue service since 2010: Seville Tramway, Saragossa Tramway, Birmingham Tramway or Kaohsiung Tramway among others.

However, I am presuming that the batteries being supplied would only allow the trains to move a short distance?

 

[tomuk]

The flirts are basically an EMU with a generator car inserted between the cars.

 

[David Goddard]

This thread has highlighted what we all know in that there can not be a "one size fits all" with constraints driven by route, stock and demand characteristics. Some routes (like Cornish branches) will certainly be a challenge, as will finding the appropriate homes for high powered stock like 185s, then there is the end or 1/3-2/3 doors conundrum.
Surely by now part of this process needs to be driven by electrification projects to make use of some of the surplus modern EMUs (at present citing 30x379s and eventually 37 x 350/2s, coincidentally the same number of vehicles as the production fleets of Class 150) which can then start cascades to ultimately replace parts of the Sprinter fleets. This leads to the separate discussion of which routes should be wired, and what will work those routes, whether these units or other existing stock which they may cascade.