JAPAN: East Japan Railway has announced the results of its experiments with a 6 m² piezoelectric floor covering, which was fitted at the ticket gates of a Tokyo station where it used the movement of passengers to generate electricity.
It worked, but only just. Production peaked at 10 kW-sec a day - equivalent to lighting a 100 W bulb for 100 sec - but the output decreased after three weeks and 800?000 passengers due to the degradation of the piezoelectric elements.
This week’s round-up of business news from the UK railway industry
FRANCE: SNCF Voyageurs has unveiled the first refurbished Tango high speed trainset and announced new destinations as part of its plans to increase the Ouigo low-cost brand’s share of the domestic high speed rail market from 20% to 30% by 2030.
EUROPE: Stadler has delivered the first of seven dual-system electric multiple-units custom-designed for Mont Blanc Express services between France and Switzerland. The 55 km metre-gauge route is operated by Transports de Martigny et Régions, which is responsible for the Swiss section from Martigny to Le Châtelard, ...
