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The Zillertal Railway within the Austrian state of Tyrol has scrapped plans to switch its diesel trains with hydrogen-powered alternate options, after an unbiased examine really helpful the road may very well be decarbonised at extra rapidly and at a a lot decrease value with batteries — both alone, or in a hybrid technique with new overhead strains.
The railway had first introduced plans in 2018 to function hydrogen-powered trains as an alternative of diesel by 2025.
Nonetheless, the deliberate first 5 items from producer Stadler — which might have value €75m and have been meant to be in operation in 2022 — have been by no means ordered, over uncertainty from each state and federal governments relating to how the undertaking could be financed.
On the time, native newspaper Mein Bezirk reported that the chairman of the Zillertal Railway supervisory board Franz Hörl was persevering with to push for the hydrogen trains regardless of rising criticism over value.
“From the Tyrolean Landhaus and from the Greens, we hear repeatedly that electrification is cheaper or higher, however our technical director Dr Schreiner has refuted this a number of occasions,” he reportedly mentioned.
“We will’t flip round on the house stretch and put a undertaking that has progressed to this point within the drawer.”
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Nonetheless, Helmut Schreiner — chief expertise officer for the Zillertal Railway when the hydrogen trains undertaking was proposed — was final yr ousted after native studies revealed that he had not solely fraudulently posed as having a doctorate since 2019 regardless of solely submitting his thesis in 2023, and that his eventual thesis submission was nearly completely plagiarised.
This prompted calls from the native arms of the Inexperienced Get together and far-right Freedom Get together of Austria to rethink the plan for hydrogen trains — the latter calling for a cessation of subsidies, whereas the previous referred to as for an outright cancellation.
As such, the Vienna College of Know-how (TU Wien) was commissioned to independently assess six completely different drivetrains for a decarbonised route, though the state of Tyrol has dominated out the set up of overhead strains alongside the complete Zillertal railway as a consequence of how land possession is structured and excessive funding prices.
Whereas a full report is but to be revealed, it revealed its preliminary outcomes to the state authorities: battery-powered trains on the entire route, or utilizing overhead strains on some sections and counting on batteries on others, are essentially the most cost-effective choices.
“Within the opinion of TU Wien, the hydrogen idea pursued since 2018 was the fitting factor to do on the time, however has now been overtaken by battery expertise,” in line with a state authorities press launch.
As such, this week, Tyrolean authorities has determined to formally begin planning for charging infrastructure to affect the Zillertal Railway, with decarbonisation set to happen between 2025 and 2030.
Stadler has beforehand advised that battery-electric trains in Europe will nearly at all times be cheaper and more efficient than hydrogen-powered choices to function on sections of railway with out overhead strains.
In the meantime, the few strains in Germany which have opted to go all-in on hydrogen have confronted quite a few issues, with the RB15 in Frankfurt just lately providing free journey to passengers all through April and Might as compensation for closely disrupted companies.
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