Alstoms high-speed train able to run at 360 km/h launched in Italy

New very high-speed train AGV.italo by Alstom came into commercial service on Saturday, April 28^th. The bright-red machine with aerodynamic design ensures safe daily operation at a speed up to 360 km/h.

The AGV.italo trainsets run on the Naples-Rome-Florence-Bologna-Milan line, before being extended to Salerno, Turin and Venice at the end of the year. With new direct round-trip AGV service, Italys leading cities are only three hours apart.

AGV .Italo was built by Alstom for the private operator Nuovo Trasporto Viaggiatori (NTV), in total Alstom will supply 25 trainsets under the contract. Today 250 regional trains and 19 high-speed trains, produced in Alstom Italian plants, are running on the national network.

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AGV.italo is an ultramodern train designed to satisfy all types of travelers. The inner space is widened by 20% giving more room for the luggage, the windows are larger by 15%, there is a cinemacar for 39 seats. The built-in multimedia services and Wi-Fi provide a new level of comfort.

AGV demonstrates an optimum environmental and economic performance: its 15% lower energy consumption, thanks to the trains articulated architecture, results in savings of 650 000 kWh for a train travelling 500 000 km a year. The AGV makes less external noise, due to its aerodynamic design and reduced number of bogies.

The AGV is the very first VHST to be designed from the outset as an internationally interoperable train that meets the needs of all involved: operators, passengers (including those with reduced mobility), train drivers, train fleet maintainers and railway infrastructure managers.  With responsible energy consumption as a key consideration in transportation, very high speed rail is emerging as a serious contender for market-leading positions in the competition between rail, road and air over distances between 100 and 100 km.