The Most Modern ComfortJet Trainsets to Start Their Trial Run with Passengers

České dráhy has put the first ones of its ComfortJet long-distance trainsets into trial operation on domestic railways. Today, the first ComfortJet unit has departed on the IC 511 train from Prague to Bohumín, and tomorrow it will return back to Prague as the IC 510 service. The ComfortJet trainsets are currently in operation in temporary eight-carriage configuration without a control car and with a dining car of a classical construction from the existing rolling stock of České dráhy. České dráhy will take possession of a total of eight ComfortJet trainsets by the end of this year.

“The ComfortJet trains are finally running on the tracks and passengers can therefore experience their comfort and modern interiors personally. We currently want to test the full functionality of all passenger systems and also to provide additional space for our train staff to get to know the new trains in detail. The Ostravan express trains between Prague and Bohumín are the ideal train services for this purpose,” says Michal Krapinec, Chairman of the Board of Directors and Director General of České dráhy, adding: “I am convinced that passengers will find ComfortJet trainsets pleasant to travel on and that the new flagship of the long-distance vehicles of České dráhy will enter their actual operation without any major problems.”

After successful testing in the Czech Republic, the first ComfortJet units will be deployed in the upcoming months in a temporary configuration on the Berliner trains heading for the German capital. Gradually, ComfortJets will appear on Vindobona or Metropolitan trains. After the introduction of the ETCS in Germany, they will use their maximum speed of 230 km/h between Berlin and Hamburg, for example, and they will also be able to use it in the future on other railway lines, for example on the new Austrian Koralmbahn line or on the first sections of high-speed lines in the Czech Republic.

Key characteristics of the ComfortJet trainsets

• Modern, non-traction reversible nine-carriage train unit with a control car,
• Front control car of the 1st carriage class, inserted carriage of the 1st carriage class, inserted carriage with a dining compartment and the 2nd carriage class compartment, inserted multi-purpose carriage of the 2nd carriage class (children’s movie, wheelchair passenger spaces, etc.), 4 inserted carriages of the 2nd carriage class, end carriage of the 2nd carriage class (bicycle transport compartment),
• In its complete configuration, a ComfortJet trainset has 99 seats in the 1st carriage class, 456 seats in the 2nd carriage class,
• Dining compartment with 18 seats and a possibility of buying hot or cold meals and other refreshments during the journey, with a modern kitchen with chilled food technology and a multi-modal convection oven for heating meals, a coffee machine, a beer tapping system and a dishwasher for environment-friendly reusable dishes,
• Large-space air-conditioned interior,
• Pressure-tightness of the entire trainset (especially important when travelling at higher speeds) to protect passengers from pressure surges and thus ear discomfort when passing through tunnels or meeting trains going in an opposite direction, while helping to create a quiet and clean interior for a long time,
• End carriage with a possibility of a frontal passage to possible supporting carriages,
• Internal accessibility, including wide permanently open inter-carriage gangways, automatic sliding doors between compartments and boarding areas operated by a photocell,
• Push-button operated boarding doors and a selective unlocking system for the boarding doors, which allows the doors to be centrally closed and locked against opening before the train starts to go and unlocked after the train has stopped (on the platform side only),
• Ergonomic adjustable seats in the first carriage class in a 2+1 configuration with leather covering and in the second carriage class in a 2+2 configuration with textile covering, the seats are situated behind each other (aircraft configuration) as well as opposite each other (vis-à-vis),
• Folding tables at the seats behind each other and fixed tables between the seats in the configuration opposite each other,
• Overhead shelves for normal luggage and racks for large luggage,
• Individual reading lights integrated into the luggage shelves in both the 1st and 2nd carriage classes,
• Wireless mobile phone chargers in the 1st carriage class,
• 230 V sockets and USB C-type connectors for the power supply of passengers’ portable electronics,
• Innovative window technology to allow mobile phone signals to pass more easily into the trainset while maintaining the thermal insulation properties of the glass, retractable sun blinds in the windows,
• Wireless data Wi-Fi network for the internet connection,
• Entertainment and information on-board portal,
• Electronic audiovisual information system with LCD monitors and an electronic reservation system,
• Wheelchair accessible travel solution including 3 wheelchair spaces for passengers with impaired mobility, wheelchair accessible toilet, electric lifting platforms for wheelchair boarding/deboarding and sockets for recharging electric wheelchair batteries, folding tables for wheelchair passengers,
• For the blind and partially sighted passengers, the train is equipped with haptic buttons and Braille signs,
• Children’s cinema, children’s board game in designated areas, a folding counter for changing baby nappies, places to store prams,
• Storage space for 12 bicycles (including sockets for the charging electric bike batteries) and large luggage,
• At one end, the unit is equipped with a traditional UIC interface which allows connection and passage to other cars of the conventional construction,
• Approved for operation in the Czech Republic as well as surrounding European countries (Germany, Poland, Austria, Slovakia, Hungary and Denmark),
• Fire protection system and an emergency brake override system to enable operation in very long tunnels, such as the Koralm Tunnel (32.9 km), Semmering Base Tunnel (27.3 km) or Fehmarn Belt Tunnel (17.6 km),
• Possibility of operation on high-speed lines,
• The ComfortJet units will be operated with the Siemens Vectron locomotives with a maximum speed of 230 km/h as a standard.

The delivery of the first modern ComfortJet trainsets is a part of a record-breaking renewal of the rolling stock of České dráhy, which is underway in the course of this year. This year České dráhy will receive almost 140 new electric, diesel and non-traction units and electric locomotives. If you count each carriage and train unit cell separately, this means approximately 440 individual vehicles. Converted to seats, České dráhy will put into service more than 22,000 comfortable seat places in air-conditioned and wheelchair-accessible trains with on-board Wi-Fi and other handy systems forming a part of the 21st century travelling.