ELISA demonstration trainset for AGV technology begins new
round of testing

After a respite from testing in order to equip ELISA with
various instruments of measurement,  our demonstration
vehicle for AGV technology took to the rails again for a new
round of testing held from Monday to Friday, 15-19 April. The
vehicle ran on a traditional rail line between Nantes and Angers
for tests on captation of the catenary's pantograph.  The
testing is being carried out by EurailTest, an independent rail
authority commissioned by  ALSTOM in order to guarantee the
objectivity of the test results.

Overall testing focuses on:

- dynamic comfort of the trainset

- intermediate motor bogies

- end carrier bogies

- airflow of traction equipment

- acoustics (noise and vibrations inside the car)

- roof-fitted rheostat

- electrical current collection

- circulation of air in passenger areas

The demonstration articulated trainset with distributed power
is composed of:

· An ALSTOM-built AGV-type front end car,

· An intermediate car (bodyshell built by CAF),

· Four TGV Réseau coach cars, provided by
the SNCF (French National Railways),

· A TGV Réseau power car, provided by the
SNCF.

Based on more than 20 years of experience in very high speed,
the AGV (automotrice à grande vitesse), an articulated high
speed train configured with distributed power, is the fruit of
ALSTOMs continuous research and development in this field
and completes ALSTOMs very high speed product range.

The demonstration train began its first lot of testing
technological concepts that will be applied to the future AGV in
early November 2001. ALSTOM is project leader for research into
the AGV concept supported by its partner CAF. The SNCF,
historically a very strong contributor to the development of high
speed rail technologies, also supported this project by providing
the TGV Réseau rake and the lines on which ELISA has been
tested and participating in the tests.