Train of the Week

I slacked off last week again, didn’t I. Anyhow, let’s continue with the Paella theme and check out the AVE Class 100. As you may recall, AVE stands for Alta Velocidad Española, the service name used by the Spanish national passenger operator, Renfe, on its high-speed trains. A Class 100 on the Madrid to Barcelona high-speed line The story here sounds similar to some of the other countries that got into the high-speed rail business by importing in the later parts of the 20th century. The Class 100, like the first KTX (Korea Train eXpress), are derived from the iconic TGV Atlantique. Like the KTX, the styling of the AVE Class 100 has been modified slightly, resulting in a more rounded nose. Nonetheless, it does not require any effort to spot the family resemblance. By SeeSchloss - Own work , CC BY-SA 2.5 , Link The trains went into service in 1992, after the first standard gauge high-speed line was completed in Spain from Madrid to Seville (it was almost going to be Iberian

A very well made video by YouTube user Mikhail@Novgorod showing various types equipment on the Córdoba to Málaga High-Speed Line I have already written about some of the  Siemens Velaro family of high-speed trains in earlier posts, but I wanted to dedicate this one to the Velaro E (for España), or more commonly known as the AVE (Alta Velocidad Española or Spanish High Speed) Class 103 . A Class 103 towards Barcelona on the outskirts of Madrid On the outside, the Velaro E looks almost identical to the ICE 3 , which is a product jointly developed by a number of companies in Germany. However, due to licensing issues, Siemens re-developed components on the ICE 3 it did not make, thus completing the Velaro platform of high-speed trains. The Velaro E also received an upgrade in the traction department, in order to cope with the demand for higher acceleration and maximum speed by Renfe (the Spanish national railway company). As a result, the AVE Class 103 is authorized for service

I've had the fortune to go on yet another getaway to the not-so-distant country of Spain, where conventional lines use the Iberian gauge of 5' 5-21/32''. Although it was devoid of any long-distance train trips, I still had the pleasure of experiencing the suburban Cercanías service in Madrid. The Class 446, De Hugh Llewelyn - 180 Uploaded by Oxyman , CC BY-SA 2.0 , Enlace The Renfe Series 446 and 447 make up a portion the current Cercanías fleet. Since they look almost identical from the outside, I'm lumping them together in this post. In reality, though, the two series differ considerably mechanically. The Class 447, De Jordi Verdugo - 447 doble en Vilajuïga , CC BY-SA 2.0 , Enlace In a nutshell, the Series 447 is lighter and faster. They have more modern electric motors that help them accelerate more rapidly (more details on Class 446  here and Class 447 here ). The two series are compatible in multiple-unit, if necessary, and up to 4 sets