its called a DMU Diesel multiple unit A DMU is a railroad passenger vehicle that is powered by a built-in diesel engine
Advantages and Disadvantages
DMUs feature a much lower cost of operation than trains of comparable capacity hauled by diesel locomotives as well as the ability to operate similar to conventional light rail vehicles but without requiring electrification. This has made them attractive for use on branch lines with relatively light passenger traffic and for temporary use on lines with greater traffic potential but which are not yet electrified.
In addition to their great flexibility to operate in any length, DMUs also feature substantially lower fuel consumption and noise output than locomotive hauled trains as well as faster acceleration. Moreover, it is much easier to reverse operation at the end of a line, because there is typically an operator’s compartment in each end of each car, and thus all that is necessary is for the operator to walk to the other end of the car or train and begin driving from that end.
The biggest advantage of DMUs as compared with electrically operated light rail vehicles is that they can provide a roughly comparable service without the need for electrification. Electrification, including the erection of overhead wires and the building of substations for power conversion, is costly and is usually only economical for lines that have a relatively high frequency of service. Thus, DMUs are usually a better choice for lines with relatively light traffic and lines with heavier traffic that have not yet been electrified.
Disadvantages of DMUs as compared with electrically powered light rail vehicles include higher energy costs per passenger for large traffic volumes, dependence on fossil fuels, t
Well, if we are talking about US operations, there is one gigantic disadvantage - unless the DMU’s are FRA certified (such as the Colorado Rail Car DMUs), then they ain’t going to be running on the US rail network - except for some systems which have temporal separation - such as the NJ Riverline, which constraints operations of both the passenger and the freight service on sections of that line), or have physical separation (such as the HBLRT, which in Bayonne uses the Conrail ROW, but has it’s own set of tracks on that ROW separate from the freight line).
There is discussion underway in California, and hopefully they can work out PTC (Positive Train Control), which would allow Freight, Heavy Passenger, and non-FRA DMU/EMU service on the same track (by the incredibly advanced concept of, get this, not letting the various type of service NOT crash into each other - what a concept!).
Oh, and I believe Budd RDCs are grandfathered in, otherwise they could not run on the US Network due to them being non-FRA compliant in Crash Buff-Strength
DMU service in Japan has been continuous since some time before WWII, with equipment ranging from school bus size 4-wheelers to luxury limited expresses with “green car” (first class) coaches and dining service. There are even commuter cars with multiple double sliding doors, very similar in layout to EMU commuter cars.
As far as I know, Japanese DMU cars are built to the same standards as non-powered and EMU cars. How that squares with US requirements deponent saith not.
Chuck (modeling Central Japan in September, 1964 - with several classes of DMUs)
That train looks very much like the ones used by OC Transpo (the public transit authority in Ottawa, ON, Canada) – the O-Train. http://www.octranspo.com/train_menue.htm
The train is quite nice to ride. Unfortunately, the Ottawa City Council has decided to not expand this LRT service due to failure to obtain funding from the federal and provincial (Ontario) governments (at least for the time being).
Looks like a modern day Budd RDC to me. Way back when, Mcguinnis replaced all locomotive hauled passenger trains on the B&M with Budd RDC cars. The RDC’s lasted well into the '80s but by the end of service, the diesel engines had been blown out of most of 'em, and they were pulled by ordinary diesel locomotives. In the '90’s the MBTA came into money and was able to retire the RDC’s and the elderly F units pulling them with new FP40’s and Horizon coachs.
As an engineering matter, self propelled railcars make sense for lightly trafficed lines which can be served by a single car. Once you get up to multiple cars, it probably makes sense to use a single locomotive rather than keep all those self propelled car engines running. T he next question, if the traffic is so light that a single car can serve it, does rail service make sense?
Two things in regards to the 1950s Budd RDCs; one idea was that you could use them as ‘building blocks’, running them in groups when traffic was busy (such as commuter rush hours, or holiday weekends) and using them singularly when traffic was light (the rest of the day) - Budd ran several ads stating just that (I saved a few from old National Geographics - probably some are available on the Web nowadays…yes, they are!).
Second, remember the ICC controlled passenger service, in particular mandating when it was to be maintained, and when train-offs could occur. So, if you are forced to maintain rail service, no matter how light the patronage, you’re gonna look for the cheapest solution.
Hmm, I hope this is in the ‘South Park’ sense of the word ‘Sweet’…
