The Train Turbo produces by the company United Aircraft Corporation was a train at high speed built during the years 1960 for use in North America. It was brought into service in 1968 and was used for the Canada until in 1982 whereas in the United States one withdrew it circulation in 1976 but remained in the inventory of Amtrak until in 1980. It was the first train with Locomotive with gas turbine - electric with being used for momentary transport in North America as well as the first pendular Train on this continent.

Description

The original plans were made for the Chesapeake and Ohio Railway during the Années 1950. Originally, the train was not mû by a turbine engine but comprised several innovations for a train at high-speed like a pendular suspension to make it possible the cars to incline themselves in the curves and to attenuate the Centrifugal force, of the engines at each ends of the train and a special stowing making it possible to link several engines in order to form longer trains.

The pendular system rested on a suspension in has case on the Bogie S at each end of the cars. By adordant a curve, the car makes a rotation compared to the point of the has and the floor is found with angle with the horizontal one but perpendulaire with the force combined of the terrestrial Gravité and that centrifuges. The cars and engines of the Turbo Train was 75 cm low than the conventional coaches in order to lower the Center of gravity compared to the axis of rotation and they were assembled on the compressed-air springs to reduce the movements.

The coaches was also articulated what wants to say that a bogie was connected to two cars adjescentes. The bogie binding two was maintained at the central point between those in the curves thanks to a system with springs patented. Such an arrangement wanted to say that the trains were fixed length because to add a car required a long work of adjustment. The way of circumventing this problem was to provide the motor coach with tail of a system of stowing male-female with an engine of head, the whole making it possible to join more two oars of trains, or, end to end. The bond, fact of a flexible corridor, made it possible to pass from an oar to the other for the personnel and the passengers.

The patents for this concept were adapted by United Aircraft according to the specifications of the ministry for American transport for the prototype of demonstration in the corridor Boston-Washington. UA kept the majority of the original plans but changed the diesel-electric locomotives for gas turbine engines using of the modified versions of turbines PT-6 of Pratt & Whitney, the ST-6 (for Stationary Turbine). Their pluissance was from 400 to 500 horsepowers and produced electricity thanks to a hydraulic fluid power connected to an alternator. An electric sensor made it possible to connect on a third rail electrified in order to operate in the tunnels, like those of Grand Exchange Station and PEN Station of New York, in order not to use the turbine in closed places.

The engine was much smaller and lighter (135 kg) that a diesel of equivalent power what would have given very compact engines. The engines slightly longer were kept than the cars of passengers, the front half contained the engine like its controls and it was surmounted by a dome for the driver and the passengers. Half postpones was occupied by seats as in a normal car.

Production and users

In May 1966, the Canadian National ordered five Turbo Trains, of seven cars each one, for the line between Montreal and Toronto. CN thought of operating these oars out of tandem to obtain trains of fourteen cars being able to transport 644 passengers. The first demonstration took place in December 1968 with James A. Abbey of Toronto, Ontario, with the orders. The electronic press and media made the voyage but unfortunately for the Turbo one, an accident with a truck with a Crossing level, close Kingston (Ontario), came to darken the event. Fortunately, the train remained on the rails. Tests in January 1969 showed problems with the brakes which froze under the conditions of the Canadian winter hard what gave, for a time, in question the reliability of the train.

The Turbo Trains entered in service for the ministry of American transport ( Department off Transportation or DOWRY ) in 1968. Amtrak used them on the road Boston - New York with a configuration of three cars and two motor coaches. The latter was to lengthen with five cars in 1972. Turbos rolled at speeds of 160 km/h in regular service but an oar of three cars with motor coaches reached 275 km/h on a test track of the DOWRY between Trenton (New Jersey) and New Brunswick (New Jersey) the December 20th 1967. This speed is still the record for a North-American train, in spite of a test of the train Acela exceeding it.

In the course of construction in 1971, CN required to transform the five oars of seven cars into three of nine cars. The engines and cars remaining were sold in Amtrak like two oars of four cars with motor coaches but the company in taken delivery only of only one following a collision of the other with a goods train during a test in 1973. The Canadian trains were built at Montreal Locomotive Works and the turbines were provided by Pratt & Whitney Canada of Longueuil (Quebec), then a subsidiary company of United Aircraft .

The oars ordered by CN arrived late in 1973. CN made a large advertizing campaign praising its " Turbo" who could rejoin Montreal in Toronto in 3 hours and 59 minutes, with stops with Dorval with the Quebec, Kingston and Guildwood in Ontario. In 1978, Via Canada Rail taken the relay of ferrovaire transport for passengers in Canada and inherited the " Turbos". Via finally service the October 31st 1982 withdrew to replace them by the oars of Train LRC. According to the statistics of CN and Via, the Turbo Trains were available 97% of time and a " Turbo" with reached 226 km/h in 1976

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