New E500 electric locomotives are to start operations next month if they pass test runs this month, Taiwan Railway Corp (TRC) said yesterday.
The new electric locomotives were purchased as part of the company’s plan to upgrade railway facilities, along with its five-year plan to enhance the safety of railway services and ensure that the safety management system is thoroughly enforced at all levels, the TRC said.
The E500 locomotives would be used to power the Chukuang and Tze-Chiang Express trains after they pass the test runs, the company said.
Photo courtesy of Taiwan Railway Corp
An E500 locomotive’s power is 1.8 times higher, and has multiple functions, such as a three-in-one parking emergency button, a speed limit backup system, idling suppression system, and door and power interlocking system, they said.
Passenger cabins would also be directly powered by a 440-Voltage system, the company added.
The TRC said that it had renovated Tze-Chiang Express trains by removing static inverters, installing close-circuit security recording in the train cabins, and updating auxiliary power supply systems and control jumpers to 96 cores, which greatly improves the train’s operational efficiency and safety.
“Using new locomotives is part of our safety improvement plan. During the test runs, train drivers, onboard crew members and train dispatchers should enforce the safety training they had and comply with safety regulations,” TRC chairman Du Wei (杜微) said.
Prior to electric locomotives, the company was using newly-purchased R200 diesel-powered locomotives for train services.
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