MF 88

MF 88 is a rolling stock on iron of the Parisian subway.

History

To design the material of the future

With the need pressing for the nearest replacement of the material MF 67, the RATP was to design the materials of the 21e century. After the experiments carried out with the prototype BOA, the control decided to lead experiments to more large scales of the whole of the railway new technologies tested successfully on the BOA.

Thus it decided to equip a short and little attended line, of a material taking again the innovations of the BOA mainly. A firm control of 27 cases of this new material, called MF 88, had passed near a consortium of manufacturers joined together around ANF, now become Bombardier Transport, project superintendent. The contract envisaged an option of a hundred additional cases which was never raised.

MF 88 thus takes again certain numbers of innovations directly from the BOA:

integral intercommunication enters the cars
onboard computing
directional axles
asynchronous motorization
brake to recuperation of energy

It was presented to the press in 1993 in the famous station Haxo.

The first startup took place the August 12th 1993 and the last the October 21st 1994.

Problems appear

If MF 88 gave whole satisfaction on certain points, like silence on train made possible by the directional axles, the daily use the existence of a certain number of problems due to the design of the trains showed and with heavy financial repercussions.

The axles and the elements of bearings prove indeed much more fragile than the traditional nondirectional axles. They also involve a premature wear of the ways. The costs of maintenance of this material are thus well too high.

The RATP thus decided not to generalize on the following materials the technique of the directional axles.

And the appearance of cracks on certain oars of MF 88 should involve a setting with the early withdrawal of this material which should be seen replacing by MF 67 released by the arrival of the material MF 2000. This replacement should start running 2008.

An assessment in half-tone

If all the promises were not held and that all the innovations of MF 88 did not prove to be good ideas, like the directional axles, it does not remain about it less than one certain number of them were taken again on the following materials of the control.

Intercommunication between the cars, the onboard computing, the electric doors thus were taken again at the same time for MP 89 and MF 2000.

Characteristics

MF 88 is present on only the line 7bis with 9 oars.

External characteristics

Outside, the cases recall for much those of MF 77, and call like them upon aluminum.

Interior characteristics

Inside, MF 88 is characterized by intercommunication between its cars, taken again principles of the BOA, by its large picture windows and its seats in cantilever.

See too

Internal bonds

Line 7bis of the subway of Paris

External bonds

MF 88, Subway-Pole.Net

Gallery

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