The Thalys PBKA is a TGV variant ordered and operated by Thalys between its namesake cities Paris, Brussels, Cologne (German: Köln) and Amsterdam, forming the abbreviation PBKA. The sets have eight carriages and are 200 m (656 ft 2 in) long, weighing a total of 385 tonnes. They have a capacity of 377 seats. They were intended to be Thalys' sole rolling stock, but their extreme cost and complexity led SNCF to order a simpler sister class, the Thalys PBA, a TGV Réseau derivative, with which they can work in multiple.
All of the trains are quadri-current, capable of operating under 25 kV 50 Hz AC (LGVs and a part of the French lignes classiques), 15 kV 16.7 Hz AC (Germany), 3 kV DC (Belgium) and 1.5 kV DC (the Netherlands and the remainder of the French lignes classiques).
Their maximum speed in regular service is 300 km/h (186 mph) with 8,800 kW (11,801 hp) under 25 kV AC, 250 km/h (155 mph) with 5,160 kW (6,920 hp) under 15 kV AC, and 220 km/h (137 mph) with 3,680 kW (4,935 hp) under 1,500 V DC;[1] further constraints resulted in imposing a limit of 200 km/h (124 mph) on these trains in Germany.[2]
Seventeen trains were ordered: nine by SNCB/NMBS, six by SNCF and two by NS. Deutsche Bahn contributed to financing two of the SNCB sets.
Fleet details
Class | No. in Service | Year Built | Operator | Current Units | Notes |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
Series 43000 | 17 | 1995–1998 | Thalys | 4301-4307 | Owned by SNCB |
4331-4332 | Owned by NS | ||||
4341-4346 | Owned by SNCF |
See also
References
- ^ Alain Jeunesse and Michel Rollin (March 2004). "La motorisation du TGV POS" (in French). Retrieved 2007-07-04.
- ^ "railfaneurope.net". 2009-03-07. Retrieved 2009-03-15.
External links
- TGV Thalys official site (in English)
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