The Rhaetian Railway ABe 8/12, which is also known as the Allegra, is a class of dual voltage metre gauge three car multiple unit trains of the Rhaetian Railway (RhB), which is the main railway network in the canton of Graubünden, Switzerland.
The class is so named under the Swiss locomotive and railcar classification system. According to that system, ABe 8/12 denotes an electric railcar train with first- and second-class compartments, and a total of 12 axles, eight of which are drive axles.
Technical details The ABe 8/12 trains were delivered between 2009 and 2011. They are used mainly on Rhaetian Railway routes with steep inclines: the Arosa line, the Bernina Railway, and the route from Landquart to Davos. They are fitted with dual voltage electrical equipment, to enable them to operate on both the Rhaetian Railway's core network, which is electrified at 11 kV 16.7 Hz, and on the Bernina Railway, which is electrified at 1,000 V DC.
Each of the ABe 8/12s is equipped with comfortable air conditioned compartments for both first class and second class passengers. The first class compartment at the front of each train offers a pleasant view of the track from directly behind the driver. In the middle of the ABe 8/12s is a large low floor area, which also allows disabled passengers a comfortable ride. Most units entered regular service soon after delivery.
Metre gauge speed record On 5 December 2009, during regular pre-service shakedown trials in the Vereina Tunnel, an ABe 8/12 set a new speed record for metre gauge railways of 139 km/h. The previous record had stood at 134 km/h, and had been held by the Regionalverkehr Bern-Solothurn (RBS). The maximum speed previously registered on the RhB had been 110 km/h.
Train names On 1 May 2010, four trains were baptised in Landquart. The train 3501 got the name of Willem Jan Holsboer, the Dutch founder of the Rhaetian Railway; the train 3502 is called after Friedrich Hennings, an engineer who was the chairman of the building of the Albulabahn. The train 3503 is called after the Swiss alpine ski racer Carlo Janka (grown up in Obersaxen GR) who won the world championship and the olympic gold medal in the giant slalom and who is the overall winner in Men's Alpine Skiing World Cup. The train 3504 got the name of Dario Cologna (grown up in Mustair GR) who is the overall winner of Men's cross-country skier and also gold medal winner of Vancouver.
List of trains
The trains in the class are named, and entered service, as follows:
List of the ABe 8/12 trains of the Rhaetian RailwayFleet no. Name Commissioning Status3501 Willem Jan Holsboer October 2009 in service3502 Friedrich Hennings November 2009 in service3503 Carlo Janka March 2010 in service3504 Dario Cologna April 2010 in service3505 Giovanni Segantini April 2010 in service3506 Anna von Planta Juli 2010 in service3507 Benedetg Fontana August 2010 in service3508 Richard Coray September 2010 in service3509 Placidus Spescha November 2010 in service3510 Alberto Giacometti November 2010 in service3511 Otto Barblan December 2010 in service3512 Jörg Jenatsch January 2011 in service3513 Simeon Bavier January 2011 in service3514 Steivan Brunies March 2011 in service3515 Alois Carigiet March 2011 in service
References
External links
Official Rhaetian Railway website Manufacturer's site Website of the manufacturer of the ABe 8/12 Allegra Datasheet Comprehensive datasheet of the manufacturer (in German) Media release Media release about the new speed record (in German)