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The TGV POS is a TGV train built by French manufacturer Alstom which is operated by the French national rail company, the
SNCF The Société nationale des chemins de fer français (, , SNCF ) is France's national State-owned enterprise, state-owned railway company. Founded in 1938, it operates the Rail transport in France, country's national rail traffic along with th ...
, in France's high-speed rail lines. It was originally ordered by the SNCF for use on the LGV Est, which was put into service in 2007. POS is an abbreviation of ''Paris-Ostfrankreich-Süddeutschland'' (), the route of the LGV Est.


History

The TGV POS project was a unique extension of the TGV Duplex order. Alstom delivered to SNCF 38 new tri-current power cars and 19 sets of double-deck Duplex passenger carriages. The tri-current power cars were paired with the 19 sets of single-level passenger carriages from TGV Réseau trainsets, while the two-level Duplex passenger carriages were paired with the 38 dual-current power cars from the Réseau trainsets. The tri-current function was necessary for the LGV Est, which ends at the German border, where the electrification switches to the system. Meanwhile, the heavily congested lines where the Réseau trainsets were used needed the additional passenger capacity provided by the Duplex passenger carriages. The project allowed SNCF to receive the tri-current power cars needed ahead of the opening of the LGV Est, without slowing the production of the Duplex trainsets. The TGV POS power cars have a total power output of under , and under 15 kV 16.7 Hz AC, with a top speed of under either system. Each TGV POS trainset weighs and is numbered in the 4400 series. The livery is the same as that of TGV Réseau sets (silver and blue). From 2013 to 2019, all of the TGV POS trainsets were shifted from LGV Est to the TGV Lyria service (a joint-venture by SNCF and the Swiss Federal Railways) between
France France, officially the French Republic, is a country located primarily in Western Europe. Overseas France, Its overseas regions and territories include French Guiana in South America, Saint Pierre and Miquelon in the Atlantic Ocean#North Atlan ...
and
Switzerland Switzerland, officially the Swiss Confederation, is a landlocked country located in west-central Europe. It is bordered by Italy to the south, France to the west, Germany to the north, and Austria and Liechtenstein to the east. Switzerland ...
, replacing the nine TGV Sud-Est trainsets that had been used. Since 2019, all TGV POS trainsets operate strictly on domestic services.


Gallery

TGV cab view riding at 320 km per hour.JPG, View from the cab aboard a TGV POS at 320 km/h TGV 4415 Strasbourg.jpg, TGV POS at in September 2010


World rail speed record

On 3 April 2007 a train using both power cars of the TGV POS trainset number 4402 set a new world speed record for travel on conventional rails. The Project V150 train reached . As part of a series of increasingly faster runs that culminated in the official record attempt, it set an unofficial speed record of on 13 February 2007. Between the TGV POS power cars were three specially modified Duplex cars. The cars closest to the locomotive were each fitted with two powered bogies, similar to the AGV prototype (four Alstom 12 LCS 3550 C traction motors), providing four more powered axles than the trainset used during the 1990 TGV world speed record, and had a theoretical maximum power output of . The train set ran with larger wheels, and the voltage of the overhead lines was increased to 31 kV from the standard 25 kV. The maximum speed was achieved near kilometer post 193 on the LGV Est between
Meuse The Meuse or Maas is a major European river, rising in France and flowing through Belgium and the Netherlands before draining into the North Sea from the Rhine–Meuse–Scheldt delta. It has a total length of . History From 1301, the upper ...
and the Champagne-Ardenne TGV stations.


See also

*
ICE 3 ICE 3 (standing for ''Intercity Express, Intercity-Express'') is a family of high-speed electric multiple unit trains operated by Deutsche Bahn. It currently includes classes 403, 407 and 408 which are additionally specified as ICE 3, New ICE 3 ...
* TGV Duplex * SNCF TGV Thalys PBKA * List of high-speed trains


References

{{High-speed rail Pos Passenger trains running at least at 300 km/h in commercial operations Electric multiple units with locomotive-like power cars 15 kV AC multiple units 25 kV AC multiple units Alstom multiple units