RMweb Premium NGT6 1315 Posted November 17, 2009 RMweb Premium Share Posted November 17, 2009 Without much preamble - just a couple of photos I took at Frankfurt Southern Station this evening. Sure was good to be doing something fun on a dreary autumn day like this one was! 143 125 coming in at the head of RB 15224 from Aschaffenburg... This is a Bombardier Itino DMU owned by private operator VIAS and used on the Odenwald network. These units, known as class 615 in the National Vehicle Register, have two 500 kW, 22 litre diesel engines with hydraulic transmission, and a top speed of 140 kph. VIAS designates them simply as VT 101 through 122 - this here being VT 120, standing by for working the VIA 84599 service to Gro??-Umstadt Wiebelsbach. And this was (I think) ICE-T set 411 068 working the ICE 1546 service from Dresden Central Station to Frankfurt Airport. And some proper loco-hauled stuff again ...146 120 with a set of bi-levels working the RB 15627 service from W?¤chtersbach to Frankfurt Central... ...followed by 111 218 working the RE 4618 service from W??rzburg to Frankfurt Central, together with another 111 at the back. There were only three carriages in the set. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
eastwestdivide Posted November 18, 2009 Share Posted November 18, 2009 Weird |\/\/| windows on the little DMU. Must make ordering spares expensive. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
RMweb Premium NGT6 1315 Posted November 18, 2009 Author RMweb Premium Share Posted November 18, 2009 Weird |\/\/| windows on the little DMU. Must make ordering spares expensive. Yeah, some passengers do find these truss-like columns annoying. The class 650 or "RegioShuttle" DMU also has windows like this, though. Overall, however, I think the Itino is a good-looking unit. I quite like those buffer-like crash absorbers as they give it character. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
eastwestdivide Posted November 22, 2009 Share Posted November 22, 2009 Everyday stuff from 1982, and the view from the top of Cologne cathedral. That was a scary climb. Does anyone know if you're still allowed up there, as it's possible we're stopping over there next summer? Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Chrislock Posted November 22, 2009 Share Posted November 22, 2009 I've travelled from Frankfurt airport vis Aschaffenberg and Wurzburg a number of times, by ICE and Regional so your pictures bring back memories. Also of the beer.... The high quality of the food and beer served on the ICE should be a lesson to our express rail companies! Chris Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
two tone green Posted November 22, 2009 Share Posted November 22, 2009 Yes, went from Hamburg to Berlin on ICE2 first class at the front so able to see the track ahead. Amazing view, incredible service both on and off the train. The rail companies could learn a lot from the Germans on how to run a railway. And as for the price. No mortgage or blood involved Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
RMweb Premium NGT6 1315 Posted November 22, 2009 Author RMweb Premium Share Posted November 22, 2009 I've travelled from Frankfurt airport vis Aschaffenberg and Wurzburg a number of times, by ICE and Regional so your pictures bring back memories. Also of the beer.... The high quality of the food and beer served on the ICE should be a lesson to our express rail companies! Chris Funny - over here many rail passengers keep complaining about what they consider to be mediocre food aboard DB trains - many indeed praising the meals served in Czech and Hungarian coaches working international services. I really cannot comment on the quality of either, however, as I haven't had a meal aboard a train in a long time. The last time had been a trip back from Brussels in 2005 on a Thalys - the meal there basically having been an airline-style one, though. Yes, went from Hamburg to Berlin on ICE2 first class at the front so able to see the track ahead. Amazing view, incredible service both on and off the train. The rail companies could learn a lot from the Germans on how to run a railway. And as for the price. No mortgage or blood involved The Hamburg-Berlin services are operated with ICE-T sets - which I agree are nice due to the "lounge" compartments behind the cabs . The 2s are mainly used on the Berlin-Cologne/Bonn and Munich-Hamburg/Bremen services, plus a couple of others. As for the second part of your comment - I would think quite a number of German passengers would disagree with it, many citing the Swiss, Austrian and French railways as examples of how to do better. Guess it stands to reason that it all depends on what you are used to in your own country, and, of course, on how you perceive certain kinds of situations. Some people explode even for minimal delays in the range of 1 to 2 minutes, some don't. I for one belong to the latter category - as a matter of fact, it is very rare for me to be annoyed with any operational difficulties while going by train as I always enter into "analysis" mode and try to think the situation through. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Taigatrommel Posted November 22, 2009 Share Posted November 22, 2009 Interesting comments about the food on German trains. My friends and I decided against eating aboard a Leipzig - Nuremberg ICE-T as we were unimpressed with the menu. Certainly it didn't strike me as being as good a selection as Polish or Czech Eurocities have. That said, it was certainly better than most British train companies offer to 2nd class passengers- no take away bag here, sit at a table and get brought your meal. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
two tone green Posted November 22, 2009 Share Posted November 22, 2009 It could have well been a T, don't know the difference really. I seem to remember getting my ticket at the check in lounge and been given a card with details of the train on. Perhaps I am getting T and 2 mixed up. But, yes, if we do compare our own service with those abroad, they are generally better and better value. I actually traveled first class from Hamburg to Eisenhuttenstadt on the east German Polish border via Berlin, had to change there, and it cost only Euro 110 which I thought very good. On time, clean, comfortable. Good seat service and enjoyable. I found the French railways good but lacked some thing compared to the German rail service. But better than Britain and if the Brit government did as the French one does about building railways and investing in them for the future, we would be doing as well. I know there are a lot of geographical differences between Britain and a lot of the European countries, but size is not everything. Spain is like a working railway and is still getting over its past in some ways but it works and the high speed stuff excellent. played with others around the world and yes, there are some worse than our own system but ours could still learn a lot from even the smallest, broken down systems as they seem to offer better value for money some how. But are we getting there as they used to say, perhaps. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
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