VivaRail has provided us with an update on the approval process of their 230-001 trains.
VivaRail said: “As we now reach the final phase of our testing and approvals process, getting ever closer to the date that 230-001 will set off from Long Marston!
Like all new trains the Class 230 needs official certification before venturing on to the mainline. Unlike most new trains the Class 230 has achieved this in a mere 18 months.
Progress
So what’s been done?
- Crash tests (real-life and simulated at varying speeds)
- Brake tests (tare and laden)
- Noise tests
- EMC tests
- Wheel tests
- Genset tests
- Speed tests … to name a few
And whilst all this has been taking place the 230 has been given a completely new interior and fitted with a new cab and strengthening structure.
Approvals
The result? A train ready for passenger service from Summer 2016!
The all-important approvals
“No railway operator would be permitted to operate the vehicles without having convinced themselves and the necessary authorities that these were all in place and suitable for the proposed operation.”
It could be said that building a train is the easy part of the equation because, although it may run beautifully, without approvals it’s going nowhere!
As the train has been built the evidence capture for the approvals process has run in parallel and, as at the end of March, roughly half the necessary submissions were made to the authorised Notified Body with an expectation that the remaining ones will be completed by the end of April.
We aim to achieve an Interim Certificate of Verification and agreement with Network Rail on Network Compatibility by the end of May to enable mainline testing and mileage accumulation to commence with authorisation for passenger service to follow shortly after that.
The VivaRail Team
The senior Vivarail team of Adrian Shooter, David King, Steve Rowell and Andy Hamilton have individually brought new rolling stock into service and maintained/overhauled fleets across the world.
With a combined total of 138 years in the rail industry they have worked on much of the UK’s rolling stock.
The designed and manufactured the Mk 4 DVTs as used on Virgin East Coast, the Class 323 EMUs and the Glasgow Underground trailer car.
The team brought into service the InterCity 125s, Class 319 EMUs, Class 321 EMUs, Class 165s, Class 168s, Class 172s and the Intercity Push/Pull trainsets based on refurbished Mk 3 coaches and not to mention the procurement, refurbishment and maintenance of the Tyne and Wear Metro