Transport for Wales will have the option of adding equipment to its Stadler tram-trains to enable charging at stations, potentially permitting extensive operation in a street environment, attendees were told at the Modern Railways Fourth Friday Club Rail in Wales and the West conference in Cardiff on 25 March. The aim with the Core Valley Lines (CVL) upgrade is to energise electrification infrastructure from Llandaff and the City line to Aberdare first, followed by Pontypridd to Treherbert and Abercynon to Merthyr Tydfil.
TfW has ordered two fleets for the electrified CVL. Nathan Sealy, Amey Infrastructure Wales’ Systems Integration Director, explained that the heavy rail Class 756 Stadler Flirt tri-modes will have large batteries as well as a diesel engine for extensive operation away from the 25kV wires. The Class 398 tram-trains will feature smaller batteries, capable of powering the units through short sections where erecting overhead line equipment would be expensive and disruptive.
The Welsh Government and Cardiff Council aim to extend the Cardiff Bay branch southwards, potentially continuing eas…
