Alstom commits itself to the French very high speed rail
programme

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The three partners also announced a forthcoming attempt on
the world rail speed record, scheduled to take place in spring
2007. The attempt takes its place naturally within the research
programme, serving to give it concrete form.

The current record of 515.3km/h was set in 1990 by a
single-deck TGV Atlantique. The attempt to set a new record of
550km/h will be performed on the future TGV Est line, before it
is put into commercial service. The train to be used in the
trial, which left Alstom’s workshops in La Rochelle on
December 19, will be made up of two POS power cars and three
duplex carriages. will use technologies and materials
prefiguring the new Alstom Transport very high speed train
generation, the AGV™. This will enable the company to
demonstrate the exceptional performance that high speed trains
built on its two industrial platforms are capable of
delivering.

The French Excellence in Very High Speed Programme
represents a major technological and commercial opportunity.
Taking advantage of the programme to showcase its skills,
expertise and experience, Alstom Transport plans to develop
sales of its very high speed trains in promising markets such
as China, Argentina, Brazil, Morocco, Algeria and in a number
of Arab countries.

By combining their expertise within the French Excellence in
Very High Speed Programme Alstom Transport, the SNCF and RFF
have all committed themselves to a range of technical research
projects.

These projects will be focused on four key dimensions: the
environment, safety & performance, life on board & new
services and journey time.