Features

The Transwa Prospector DEMU capable of up to 200 km/h provides a passenger service between Perth, West Australia and the mining town of Kalgoorlie

It is not necessary for every single car in an MU set to be motorized. Therefore MU cars can be motor units or trailer units. Instead of motors, trailing units can contain some supplemental equipment such as air compressors, batteries, etc. In some MU trains, every car is equipped with a driving console, and other controls necessary to operate the train. Therefore every car can be used as a cab car whether it is motorized or not, if on the end of the train. This is the case with NJ Transit Arrows, Metro-North Railroad (New York) EMUs. However, other EMUs can be driven/controlled only from dedicated Cab cars. Among such EMUs are the former Russian ER2, ER9, German classes 423-426, etc. Well-known examples of MUs are the Japanese Shinkansen and the last generation German ICE. Most trains in the Netherlands and Japan are MUs, making them suitable for use in areas of high population density. A new high-speed MU, the AGV, was unveiled by France’s Alstom on February 5, 2008. It has a claimed service speed of 360 km/h.

5. Answer the questions.

1. What are the disadvantages of multiple units as compared to locomotive-hauled trains?

2. Is it easy to repair MUs?

3. Why are MUs not safe on collision?

4. What would multiple-unit arrangement limit?

5. Why is there no passage between high-speed coupled sets?

6. What leads to higher crew costs and lower utilization of crew resources?

7. Why are MUs not so flexible as large locomotives?

8. What is a particular problem of DMUs?

9. Can obsolete car be replaced without affecting the other in MUs?

10. Why can every car be used as a cab car?

6. Translate the following sentences, paying attention to the Passive Voice:

1. The bonnet roof is divided into four removable sections which ensures free extraction of the equipment for repairs. 2. Air is sucked through the sections by three eight-blade motor fans. 3. The air for operation of the engine is purified in two-stage oil filters with a degree of purification of 98%. 4. On customer’s request the locomotive was also provided with electrodynamic brakes. 5. The locomotive is painted with enamels intended for tropical conditions, the colours used being selected with a view to customer’s requests.

7. Read the following text. Give the name to the text. Make a plan and retell the text.

Travel by rail becomes more competitive in areas of higher population density or where gasoline is expensive, because conventional trains are more fuel efficient than cars when ridership is high, similar to other forms of mass transit. Very few high-speed trains consume diesel or other fossil fuels but the power stations that provide electric trains with power can consume fossil fuels. In Japan and France, where the most extensive high speed rail networks exist, a large proportion of electricity comes from nuclear power. Even using electricity generated from coal or oil, trains are more fuel efficient per passenger per kilometer traveled than the typical automobile because of economies of scale in generator technology. Rail networks, like highways, require large fixed capital investments and thus require a blend of high density and government investment to be competitive against existing capital infrastructure for aircraft and automobiles. Urban density and mass transit have been key factors in the success of European and Japanese railway transport, especially in countries such as the Netherlands, Belgium, Germany, Switzerland, Spain and France.

UNIT 7

driving trailer – причепний вагон з постом керування

flatcar – вагон-платформа

to recapture – повертати

feasible – здійснимий

software – програмне забезпечення

interior – внутрішній

versatility – експлуатаційна гнучкість