train A train (from Old French , from Latin">-4; we might wonder whether there's a point at which it's appropriate to talk of the beginnings of French, that is, when it wa ... , from Latin , "to pull, to draw") is a series of connected vehicles th ...

ABB ABB Group is a Swedish-Swiss multinational electrical engineering corporation. Incorporated in Switzerland as ABB Ltd., and headquartered in Zurich, it is dual-listed on the Nasdaq Nordic exchange in Stockholm, Sweden, and the SIX Swiss Excha ...

Adtranz Adtranz was a multi-national rail transportation equipment manufacturer with facilities concentrated in Europe and the US. The company, legally known as ABB Daimler-Benz Transportation, was created in 1996 as a joint venture between ABB and Daim ...

Bombardier Transportation Bombardier Transportation was a Canadian rolling stock and rail transport manufacturer, with headquarters in Toronto and Berlin. It was one of the world's largest companies in the rail vehicle and equipment manufacturing and servicing industry. ...

Randers Randers () is a city in Randers Municipality, Central Denmark Region on the Jutland peninsula. It is List of cities and towns in Denmark, Denmark's sixth-largest city, with a population of 64,511 ().ABB ABB Group is a Swedish-Swiss multinational electrical engineering corporation. Incorporated in Switzerland as ABB Ltd., and headquartered in Zurich, it is dual-listed on the Nasdaq Nordic exchange in Stockholm, Sweden, and the SIX Swiss Excha ...

Randers Randers () is a city in Randers Municipality, Central Denmark Region on the Jutland peninsula. It is List of cities and towns in Denmark, Denmark's sixth-largest city, with a population of 64,511 ().DSB. A number of sets have been exported to

Sweden Sweden, formally the Kingdom of Sweden, is a Nordic countries, Nordic country located on the Scandinavian Peninsula in Northern Europe. It borders Norway to the west and north, and Finland to the east. At , Sweden is the largest Nordic count ...

,

Israel Israel, officially the State of Israel, is a country in West Asia. It Borders of Israel, shares borders with Lebanon to the north, Syria to the north-east, Jordan to the east, Egypt to the south-west, and the Mediterranean Sea to the west. Isr ...

,

Spain Spain, or the Kingdom of Spain, is a country in Southern Europe, Southern and Western Europe with territories in North Africa. Featuring the Punta de Tarifa, southernmost point of continental Europe, it is the largest country in Southern Eur ...

,

United States The United States of America (USA), also known as the United States (U.S.) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It is a federal republic of 50 U.S. state, states and a federal capital district, Washington, D.C. The 48 ...

,

Canada Canada is a country in North America. Its Provinces and territories of Canada, ten provinces and three territories extend from the Atlantic Ocean to the Pacific Ocean and northward into the Arctic Ocean, making it the world's List of coun ...

,

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 ...

,

Germany Germany, officially the Federal Republic of Germany, is a country in Central Europe. It lies between the Baltic Sea and the North Sea to the north and the Alps to the south. Its sixteen States of Germany, constituent states have a total popu ...

and

Portugal Portugal, officially the Portuguese Republic, is a country on the Iberian Peninsula in Southwestern Europe. Featuring Cabo da Roca, the westernmost point in continental Europe, Portugal borders Spain to its north and east, with which it share ...

. At DSB, up to five train sets can be connected for a total length of and a total of 720 seats. An electrically powered four-carriage version, the IR4 was introduced between 1995 and 1998.

General overview

The IC3 is a wide articulated train made of light alloy with

Jacobs bogie Jacobs bogies (named after Wilhelm Jakobs, 1858–1942, a German Mechanical engineering, mechanical Railway engineering, railway engineer) are a type of Rail transport, rail vehicle bogie commonly found on Articulated car, articulated railcars an ...

s shared between carriages. There are two engines in each end of the front and rear carriages, central car has none, giving a total of . The efficient mechanical transmissions with multiple gear ratios and high power for the tare weight give the IC3 good acceleration capabilities. The short distances between stations on inter-city routes in Denmark makes acceleration more important than high top speed, and so the IC3 units are geared for a top service speed of only . The front- and cab-design is the most significant feature of the IC3 (and its cousins). When viewed from the outside, the viewer will notice the large rubber diaphragm surrounding a flat cab. The cab is separate section of the train, but the table with the controls is mounted on a large door, to which the seat is also mounted. When two or more trainsets are coupled together in a single train, the entire front door folds away to give a wide passage, and the rubber diaphragms at the ends form a flush aerodynamic seal. The IC3 can also couple and run in tandem with the electrical version, the IR4. Up to five trainsets can be coupled together. The IC3 can also be coupled mechanically with its Flexliner little sister, IC2', but not the cousin ET-FT-ET. DSB runs 96 IC3 sets and 44 IR4 sets. Some IC3s run in Sweden, mainly

Kalmar Kalmar (, , ) is a city in the southeast of Sweden, situated by the Baltic Sea. It had 41,388 inhabitants in 2020 and is the seat of Kalmar Municipality. It is also the capital of Kalmar County, which comprises 12 municipalities with a total of ...

-

Linköping Linköping ( , ) is a city in southern Sweden, with around 167,000 inhabitants as of 2024. It is the seat of Linköping Municipality and the capital of Östergötland County. Linköping is also the episcopal see of the Diocese of Linköping (Chu ...

. They are designated Y2. Before 2007 they also ran

Malmö Malmö is the List of urban areas in Sweden by population, third-largest city in Sweden, after Stockholm and Gothenburg, and the List of urban areas in the Nordic countries, sixth-largest city in Nordic countries, the Nordic region. Located on ...

-

Karlskrona Karlskrona (, , ) is a locality and the seat of Karlskrona Municipality, Blekinge County, Sweden with a population of 66,675 in 2018. It is also the capital of Blekinge County. Karlskrona is known as Sweden's only baroque city and is host to ...

(designated Y2K; adapted to run in Denmark as well), but that railway has been electrified, and after that 13 sets were sold to Denmark and Israel, and one scrapped because of a truck collision causing the death of a train driver. Six sets still run in Sweden. Bet-Shemesh-Jr-rail

Another large operator of the IC3 trains is

Israel Railways Israel Railways Ltd. (, ''Rakevet Yisra'el'') is the state-owned principal railway company responsible for all inter-city, commuter, and freight rail transport in Israel. Israel Railways network consists of of track. All its lines are standar ...

, who operate about 50 IC3 sets. Some of those sets were assembled in

Israel Israel, officially the State of Israel, is a country in West Asia. It Borders of Israel, shares borders with Lebanon to the north, Syria to the north-east, Jordan to the east, Egypt to the south-west, and the Mediterranean Sea to the west. Isr ...

from Danish-imported

complete knock-down A knock-down kit (also knockdown kit, knocked-down kit, or simply knockdown or KD) is a collection of parts required to assemble a product. The parts are typically manufactured in one country or region, and then exported to another country or r ...

(CKD) kits by ''RAMTA'', a division of

Israel Aerospace Industries Israel Aerospace Industries (IAI; ), is Israel's major aerospace and aviation manufacturer, producing aerial and astronautic systems for both military and civilian usage. It has 14,000 employees as of 2021. IAI is state-owned by the government ...

, in

Dimona Dimona (, ) is an Israeli city in the Negev desert, to the south-east of Beersheba and west of the Dead Sea above the Arabah, Arava valley in the Southern District (Israel), Southern District of Israel. In , its population was . The Shimon Pere ...

, and some are modified IC3 trainsets which were originally delivered to Sweden. Israel Railways have started to slowly retire their sets since 2021. Renfe Class 594 reformado

Similarly in Spain, the national rail operator

Renfe Renfe (, ), officially Renfe-Operadora, is Spain's national state-owned railway company. It was created in 2005 upon the split of the former Spanish National Railway Network (RENFE) into the Administrador de Infraestructuras Ferroviarias ( ...

operates some IC3 derivatives classified as RENFE Class 594 on the Valladolid - Zamora - Puebla de Sanabria, Coruña - Ferrol, Coruña - Lugo - Monforte de Lemos and Madrid - Soria routes since 1997 as a medium-range regional service (Media Distancia) The Class 594 trains were built by CAF under a technology license agreement from ABB Scandia. Some Class 594 units were refurbished in the 2010s and as a consequence have had their rubber diaphragms removed in favour of conventional cab ends. In 1997, an Israel Railways IC3 was tested in North America under the name ‘Flexliner’.

Amtrak The National Railroad Passenger Corporation, Trade name, doing business as Amtrak (; ), is the national Passenger train, passenger railroad company of the United States. It operates intercity rail service in 46 of the 48 contiguous United Stat ...

used it on the ''

Hiawatha Hiawatha ( , also : ), also known as Ayenwatha or Aiionwatha, was a precolonial Native American leader and cofounder of the Iroquois Confederacy. He was a leader of the Onondaga people, the Mohawk people, or both. According to some accounts, he ...

'', ''St Louis and Kansas City Mules'', '' San Diegan'', and between Eugene and

Portland, Oregon Portland ( ) is the List of cities in Oregon, most populous city in the U.S. state of Oregon, located in the Pacific Northwest region. Situated close to northwest Oregon at the confluence of the Willamette River, Willamette and Columbia River, ...

; Via Rail Canada tested it for services on the Windsor–

Quebec Quebec is Canada's List of Canadian provinces and territories by area, largest province by area. Located in Central Canada, the province shares borders with the provinces of Ontario to the west, Newfoundland and Labrador to the northeast, ...

corridor. The total number of ABB Scandia/Adtranz-built IC3 and IC3-based trainsets is 202.

Internet

These trains were equipped with

wireless internet Wireless communication (or just wireless, when the context allows) is the transfer of information (''telecommunication'') between two or more points without the use of an electrical conductor, optical fiber or other continuous guided mediu ...

through a

WiFi Wi-Fi () is a family of wireless network protocols based on the IEEE 802.11 family of standards, which are commonly used for Wireless LAN, local area networking of devices and Internet access, allowing nearby digital devices to exchange data by ...

connection. This service is available for InterCity and InterCityLyn trains between Copenhagen and Århus. This is available free of charge for visiting DSB and TDC network websites and for two minutes for other websites. DSB's costs for internet use are 29 DKK for 5 hours of internet within a 24-hour period.

History

Development of the IC3 started in 1984, production started in 1986, and they entered service in 1991. However, its roots can be traced back further. In 1972, DSB celebrated its 125th anniversary, and at the same time made some large changes. First of all, two years later, in 1974, a completely new timetable system, the K74, was introduced. Secondly, the concept of ''lyntog'' was removed as the foundation of the long-distance traffic, and instead a new ''

InterCity InterCity (commonly abbreviated ''IC'' on timetables and tickets) is the train categories in Europe, classification applied to certain long-distance passenger train services in Europe. Such trains (in contrast to InterRegio, regional train, r ...

'' concept took over that role. After a few years, a new concept emerged, the so-called ', which were workgroups tasked with specific areas. There were groups for electrical locomotives, diesel-powered locomotives, and others, including the "long distance train" APO group. The ''long-distance train'' - APO was originally tasked with finding a suitable train for long-distance traffic. However, it was later rumoured that the ''lyntog''-concept might be re-introduced within a few years, and so it was decided to find a suitable design for that concept. Several requirements were made: primarily to use air-conditioning for cooling and heating of passenger areas, and be able to use either electric or diesel propulsion. The second requirement were due to the fact, that the Danish politicians had yet to decide whether or not to fund a proposed electrification of the mainlines of the Danish railways. At the time no such train were available, so the group designed one themselves. In order to avoid propulsion units in the train (and thus reducing variants and development costs), it was designed to use a locomotive to haul it, and equip the end wagons with driver cabins. The train was designed as a set of 5 carriages, with a service car in the middle (containing a small kiosk, and other facilities) and 4 passenger coaches. In 1983, the group responsible for the timetables had made a set of requirements for the ideal future train for the InterCity traffic. The requirements were based on experience with the prototype (which had now become known as IC5; not to be confused with the new electric

Alstom Alstom SA () is a French multinational rolling stock manufacturer which operates worldwide in rail transport markets. It is active in the fields of passenger transportation, signaling, and locomotives, producing high-speed, suburban, regional ...

Coradia Stream trains ordered by DSB in 2021): it should be light-weight (preferably built of aluminium), its passenger compartments should have fixed windows and air conditioning, it should be self-propelled, it should use standard engine and transmission components from the bus and truck industry, and it should be fast and easy to add carriages (by coupling with another trainset); along with a number of technical requirements. The new project became designated IC3. After the IC3 project had been proposed, it was relatively quickly decided to cancel development of the IC5-prototype, as it suffered from several problems. The main problem was the weight of the train. Originally it had been estimated to weigh around , but ended up weighing . A train of similar size and capacity, consisting of conventional wagons, would weigh approximately the same as originally estimated. When it was first proposed to cancel the IC5 project, the train's designers tried to save it by proposing several solutions to the train's problems, but to no use: DSB's management had decided that the IC3 was the proper train for the future. The task of developing the IC3 was assigned to a joint-group of designers and technical engineers from DSB itself and the factory Scandia (now a part of the Bombardier corporation). As a side note, it should be mentioned that neither DSB or Scandia themselves, wished that they (Scandia) got the task, as they had pretty much no experience in this kind of trains. The first IC3 set was delivered in 1988, but suffered from a number of teething problems primarily due to its (at the time very advanced) computer systems. One example was that it would lock the toilet door with no apparent reason (it was programmed to lock the door either when in use and requested so via a button, or when the toilet-system suffered a problem). Another issue was that

snow Snow consists of individual ice crystals that grow while suspended in the atmosphere—usually within clouds—and then fall, accumulating on the ground where they undergo further changes. It consists of frozen crystalline water througho ...

would build up around the diaphragms and block the driver's view. By late 1990, the majority of these problems had been solved, and so the train entered service in 1991. In 2017, DSB announced the IC3 stock would receive a 10-year life extension, allowing them to replace

IC4 The IC4 is an inter-city rail train built by the Italian train manufacturer AnsaldoBreda for the trans-Great Belt routes of Danske Statsbaner (DSB), Denmark's national railway operator. Under DSB's 'Good trains for everyone' plan ('Gode tog ti ...

trains. In 2018, the first six ERTMS-retrofitted IC3 trains left the workshop at Langå, with the conversions performed by

Alstom Alstom SA () is a French multinational rolling stock manufacturer which operates worldwide in rail transport markets. It is active in the fields of passenger transportation, signaling, and locomotives, producing high-speed, suburban, regional ...

with technical assistance from

Banedanmark Banedanmark (; previously Banestyrelsen) is a Danish agency that is responsible for the maintenance and traffic control on all of the state owned Danish railway network. History In 1997, Banedanmark came into existence, having been branched o ...

and DSB. All IC3's are to be converted to ERTMS from the proprietary

ZUB 123 The ZUB 1xx system is a family of train protection systems produced by Siemens. Its ZUB balises were deployed in the ZUB 121 train protection system in the Swiss railway network, in the ZUB 122 tilting control system in the German railway netwo ...

ATC system, which is to be done around the fall of 2019 and into 2020. In 2021, DSB bought two sets from

Israel Railways Israel Railways Ltd. (, ''Rakevet Yisra'el'') is the state-owned principal railway company responsible for all inter-city, commuter, and freight rail transport in Israel. Israel Railways network consists of of track. All its lines are standar ...

for spare parts. In 2021, Israel Railways announced its intention to retire its IC3 fleet, in light of the introduction of Siemens Desiro HC

electric multiple units An electric multiple unit or EMU is a multiple-unit train consisting of self-propelled carriages using electricity as the motive power. An EMU requires no separate locomotive, as electric traction motors are incorporated within one or a number ...

and newer fifth-generation Bombardier Double-deck Coaches. The trains were withdrawn from timetabled services in November 2023 but retained as backup, and completely retired on 28 January 2024. This entailed the permanent termination of services on the Jaffa-Jerusalem railway between

Beit Shemesh Beit Shemesh () is a city council (Israel), city located approximately west of Jerusalem in Israel's Jerusalem District. A center of Haredi Judaism and Modern Orthodoxy, Beit Shemesh has a population of 170,683 as of 2024. The city is named afte ...

and Jerusalem–Malha (which have already been suspended indefinitely due to the

COVID-19 pandemic The COVID-19 pandemic (also known as the coronavirus pandemic and COVID pandemic), caused by severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2), began with an disease outbreak, outbreak of COVID-19 in Wuhan, China, in December ...

), as the journey cannot be travelled by Israel Railway's newer rolling stock due to said railway line's restrictive

loading gauge A loading gauge is a diagram or physical structure that defines the maximum height and width dimensions in railway vehicles and their loads. Their purpose is to ensure that rail vehicles can pass safely through tunnels and under bridges, and k ...

. In 2021, the Maritime and Commercial Court ruled that

Deutz AG Deutz AG is a German internal combustion engine manufacturer, based in Porz, Cologne, Germany. History The company was founded by Nicolaus Otto, the inventor of the four-stroke internal combustion engine, and his partner Eugen Langen on 3 ...

had misused a dominant market position in 2010 regarding replacement motor parts. The remaining Swedish Y2 fleet is due to be replaced by new CAF Civity Nordic electric and bi-modal trains, expected 2024–2027.

Technical overview

An IC3 set consists of (as the name implies) three carriages. These are the MFA (passenger and motor carriage), the FF (passenger center carriage) and the MFB (passenger and motor carriage). The MFA and MFB are, from a technical point of view, identical and only differ slightly in the interior design. The train is powered by four diesel engines, each delivering , giving the train a total to propel it. The engines are mounted in the MFA and MFB carriages, with two engines in each carriage. Each engine drives the axles on the bogies via an electronically controlled automatic gearbox. The engines are mounted so that the end which would normally point forwards in a rear-wheel-drive car, instead faces the center of the MFA and MFB carriages. Due to this mounting design and nature of combustion engines and to the fact that the train runs forward in both directions, a so-called "reverse gear" had to be attached to automatic gearboxes. They are responsible for making the axles turn the right way. These gears are normally not controlled directly by the train's driver; instead, the train's on-board computers check which of the two cabs is active to determine the train's primary driving direction, setting the reverse gears accordingly.

Fleet details

Class MF (IC3)

* Operator: DSB * Number built: 92 * Year built: 1986–1992 * Cars per set: 3 * Unit nos.: 5001-5092 * Notes: 5076-5092 fitted with PZB to go to Germany, (IC3 DSB-DB REGIO) and DSB IC3. * Models: File:DSB IC3 Fred.JPG, DSB Class MF (DSB IC3) at Frederikshavn station August 2007 File:DSB IC3 51 at Nordhavn Station.jpg, DSB IC3 51 at Nordhavn Station File:Model of DSB IC3 03.JPG, Model of DSB IC3 File:Models of trains from Bombardier - DSB IC3.jpg, Models of trains from Bombardier - DSB IC3 File:Opening day of the third model railway layout of Københavns Hovedbanegård 06.JPG, The third model of IC3’s trains File:Modeltog for alle - Bombardier Transportation 04.jpg, All of the models of

Bombardier Transportation Bombardier Transportation was a Canadian rolling stock and rail transport manufacturer, with headquarters in Toronto and Berlin. It was one of the world's largest companies in the rail vehicle and equipment manufacturing and servicing industry. ...

IC3’s trains * Number built: 4 * Unit nos.: 5093-5096 * Notes: Purchased from SJ and sold to The

Israel Railways Israel Railways Ltd. (, ''Rakevet Yisra'el'') is the state-owned principal railway company responsible for all inter-city, commuter, and freight rail transport in Israel. Israel Railways network consists of of track. All its lines are standar ...

and then returned to Randers, Denmark. * Models: File:Modeltog for alle 2019 - Bombardier Transportation 08.jpg, Model of DSB IC3 Bombardier Transportation File:Model of DSB MFA 5003 at Jernbanemuseet.jpg, Model of DSB MFA 5003 and 5093-5096 File:Modeltog for alle - Bombardier Transportation 05.jpg, All the models of Bombardier Transportation IC3’s trains File:Modeltog for alle - Bombardier Transportation 06.jpg, Some models of the IC3’s trains

Class 594.0

* Operator:

Renfe Renfe (, ), officially Renfe-Operadora, is Spain's national state-owned railway company. It was created in 2005 upon the split of the former Spanish National Railway Network (RENFE) into the Administrador de Infraestructuras Ferroviarias ( ...

* Number built: 16 * Year built: 1997–2001 * Cars per set: 2-3 * Unit nos.: 594.001-594.002, 594.004-594.008, 594.010-594.015 * Models: File:Modeltog for alle 2019 - Bombardier Transportation 04.jpg, Model of Bombardier Transportation’s Renfe TRD Class 594, Spanish litra 594 trains File:RNTRD001.JPG, RENFE Class Spanish litra 594 at Puerto-Escandon, April 2005 File:Renfe trd.jpg, Renfe TRD File:Interior Estación San Cristovo.jpg, Interior Estación San Cristovo

Class 594.1

* Operator:

Renfe Renfe (, ), officially Renfe-Operadora, is Spain's national state-owned railway company. It was created in 2005 upon the split of the former Spanish National Railway Network (RENFE) into the Administrador de Infraestructuras Ferroviarias ( ...

* Number built: 8 * Unit nos.: 594.101-594.108 * Notes: Built with tilting capability * Models: File:Renfe 594-108 TRD.jpg, Renfe 594-108 TRD File:594-507 Valladolid-Puebla de Sanabria.jpg, 594-507 Valladolid-Puebla de Sanabria File:Tren Renfe TRD Madrid - Salamanca.jpg, Tren Renfe TRD Madrid - Salamanca File:Palencia station 2014 03.JPG, Renfe TRD at Palencia station

Class 594.2

* Operator:

Renfe Renfe (, ), officially Renfe-Operadora, is Spain's national state-owned railway company. It was created in 2005 upon the split of the former Spanish National Railway Network (RENFE) into the Administrador de Infraestructuras Ferroviarias ( ...

* Number built: 2 * Unit nos.: 594.201-594.202 * Notes: Converted from 594.0. Built with

variable gauge Variable gauge systems allow railway vehicles to travel between two railways with different track gauges. Vehicles are equipped with variable gauge axles (VGA). The gauge is altered by driving the train through a gauge changer installed at the b ...

capability * Models: File:Renfe Class 594 reformado.JPG, Renfe Class 594, TRD refurbished IC3 File:A Coruña station 2015 (5).JPG, Renfe Class 594, TRD at Coruña station File:Ferrol station 2015 (8).JPG, Renfe Class 594, TRD at Ferrol station

Israeli IC3

* Operator:

Israel Railways Israel Railways Ltd. (, ''Rakevet Yisra'el'') is the state-owned principal railway company responsible for all inter-city, commuter, and freight rail transport in Israel. Israel Railways network consists of of track. All its lines are standar ...

* Number built: 10 * Year built: 1992 * Cars per set: 3 * Unit nos.: 01-10, 188-7009, 6072, 7020-7090, 7217-7250 * Notes: Built with PZB (Required in Israel) and returned to Randers, Denmark. * Models: File:Models of trains from Bombardier - IC3 for Israel.jpg, Models of trains from Bombardier - IC3 for Israel, Israeli IC3, Israel Railways File:IC3 train towards Beit Shemesh at Jerusalem Malcha train station.jpg, IC3 train towards Beit Shemesh at Jerusalem Malcha train station File:Israel Railways ABB Scandia IC3 no. 7201 in Israel Railway Museum.jpg, Israel Railways ABB Scandia IC3 no. 7201; as the first IC3 in Israel Railways service, it was preserved in the Israel Railway Museum rather than being returned to Randers, Denmark File:IC3 7039 ISRAEL RAIL EFI ELIAN.jpg, IC3 7039 File:Bat-galim platforms.jpg, A IC3 train at Bat-galim platforms * Number built: 31 * Year built: 1994–1996 * Unit nos.: 11-41 * Notes: Built with PZB (Required in Israel) in

Dimona Dimona (, ) is an Israeli city in the Negev desert, to the south-east of Beersheba and west of the Dead Sea above the Arabah, Arava valley in the Southern District (Israel), Southern District of Israel. In , its population was . The Shimon Pere ...

by RAMTA and returned to Randers, Denmark. * Models: File:Bet-Shemesh-Jr-rail.jpg, Israel Railways IC3 on the now-retired old line to Jerusalem, 2006 File:IC3 -7044 Herzelia 27-4-2012.jpg, IC3, Herzelia File:7005-7405-7205, Израиль, Хайфа, перегон Хоф Ха-Кармель - Бат-Галим (Trainpix 33687).jpg, IC3 7005-7405-7205, train 33687, Israel, Haifa, distillation of Hof Ha-Carmel - Bat-Galim File:Israel Railways IC3 47, Jerusalem–Malha, 2019 (02).jpg, Israel Railways IC3 47, Jerusalem–Malha File:Nahariyya station 200803 01.jpg, IC3 train at Nahariyya station File:Beersheba stabling yard a 01.jpg, A IC3 train at Beersheba stabling yard * Number built: 9 * Year built: 1990 * Unit nos.: 42-50 * Notes: Purchased from SJ. Entered service 2005. Fitted with PZB (Required in Israel) and returned to Randers, Denmark. * Models: File:Railway station Jerusalem-Malha - J&J02.jpg, Jerusalem-Malha File:Bat Galim station 200801 04.jpg, Bat Galim station File:Tlvgenel014.jpg, Two units of IC3 train interconnected File:Inter City 3.jpg, Four units of IC3 train interconnected File:PikiWiki Israel 16204 kiryat gat.jpg, IC3 16204 File:Israel Railways IMG 0295 (533243994).jpg, Israel Railways, IC3

Y2

* Operator: Kalmar länstrafik/Transdev * Number built: 6 * Cars per set: 3 * Unit nos.: 1367–1386 * Notes: Early on owned by SJ. 14 more have been sold to The

Israel Railways Israel Railways Ltd. (, ''Rakevet Yisra'el'') is the state-owned principal railway company responsible for all inter-city, commuter, and freight rail transport in Israel. Israel Railways network consists of of track. All its lines are standar ...

or some scrapped and 1367-1371 returned to Randers, Denmark and 1372-1386 sold to The

Israel Railways Israel Railways Ltd. (, ''Rakevet Yisra'el'') is the state-owned principal railway company responsible for all inter-city, commuter, and freight rail transport in Israel. Israel Railways network consists of of track. All its lines are standar ...

. * Models: File:Kustpilen1.jpg, Swedish (Kustpilen Y2) IC3 File:Bombardier Y2 Kalmar Länstrafik KLT ÖGT Östgötatrafiken 1379.jpg, Bombardier Y2 Kalmar Länstrafik and Östgötatrafiken 1379 File:Hässleholm - Pierre and Train to Helsingborg (3704909635).jpg, Y2 IC3 Hässleholm - Helsingborg File:Interiör första klass Kustpilen.jpg, Interior for first class Kustpilen File:Modeltog for alle 2019 - Bombardier Transportation 07.jpg, A model of (Kustpilen Y2) IC3

VIA

* Operator:

Via Rail Via Rail Canada Inc. (), operating as Via Rail or Via (stylized as VIA Rail), is a Canadian Crown corporation that operates intercity passenger rail service in Canada. As of December 2023, Via Rail operates 406 trains per week across eight ...

* Number built: 2 * Year built: 1996-1997 * Cars per set: 3 * Unit nos.: 7002-7203 * Notes: Some IC3 trains sold from The

Israel Railways Israel Railways Ltd. (, ''Rakevet Yisra'el'') is the state-owned principal railway company responsible for all inter-city, commuter, and freight rail transport in Israel. Israel Railways network consists of of track. All its lines are standar ...

and then returned to Randers, Denmark. * Models: File:Models of trains from Bombardier - IC3 for Israel.jpg, Models of trains from Bombardier - IC3 for Canada, Via Rail File:VIA Rail Corridor Schematic Map.png, Via Rail Corridor Schematic Map

AMTRAK

* Operator:

Amtrak The National Railroad Passenger Corporation, Trade name, doing business as Amtrak (; ), is the national Passenger train, passenger railroad company of the United States. It operates intercity rail service in 46 of the 48 contiguous United Stat ...

* Number built: 2 * Year built: 1996/1997-2000 * Cars per set: 3 * Unit nos.: 7003-7201 * Notes: Some IC3 trains sold from

Via Rail Via Rail Canada Inc. (), operating as Via Rail or Via (stylized as VIA Rail), is a Canadian Crown corporation that operates intercity passenger rail service in Canada. As of December 2023, Via Rail operates 406 trains per week across eight ...

and The

Israel Railways Israel Railways Ltd. (, ''Rakevet Yisra'el'') is the state-owned principal railway company responsible for all inter-city, commuter, and freight rail transport in Israel. Israel Railways network consists of of track. All its lines are standar ...

and then returned to Randers, Denmark. * Models: File:Models of trains from Bombardier - IC3 for Israel.jpg, Models of trains from Bombardier - IC3 for USA, Amtrak File:IC3 running as an Amtrak San Diegan in Del Mar, July 19, 1996.jpg, IC3 Amtrak San Diegan in Del Mar, July 19, 1996

Danish derivatives

The IC3 has not only served as the backbone of the Danish InterCity concept since the 1990s; it has also served as the foundation and/or inspiration for three other trains. These are the IR4, the IC2, and the Øresundtrain.

IR4 "InterRegional 4"

The first of the IC3's offspring, which is electrically powered. It was originally designed for Danish regional traffic but has later been upgraded and is currently also being used in InterCity traffic, often together with one or more IC3-set(s) on routes which have been electrified. The IR4 consists of 4 carriages (as implied by its name), all of which are similar in design to the MFA/MFB carriages (when viewed from the outside), with a wide set of doors in one end of each carriage. A total of 44 IR4 sets were built, and all sets are still in use. 1 set burned in 2011 but was rebuilt and re-entered service in 2015.

IC2 "InterCity 2"

The second of the IC3's offspring is often described as a "discount edition of the IC3", which is not entirely fair. It was designed in 1992–1993, when some private railway operators in Denmark were looking for new trains. It was originally proposed to be an IC3 with the center carriage (the FF) removed, and without engines in one of the remaining carriages. This design did not entirely satisfy representatives of the private railways, so instead, after some debate, it was redesigned to its current appearance. IC2 is a further development of IC3. It was designed for use on the private lines and on certain local lines, as suggested by the designation "RL2D" which is believed to mean "Regional Local 2 Diesel", with 2 being the number of carriages. The IC2 consists of 2 carriages, the MF and the FS. The MF is a combined engine and passenger carriage, and has its set of doors placed towards the cab of the carriage, actually as close to the bogies as possible. The MF houses the engines, which are mounted under the floor in the middle of the carriage. It has two engines, delivering a total of 627 kW (840 hp), and drives the train in the same way as the MFA/MFB carriages drives the IC3. The FS is a combined cab and passenger carriage, and has a quite unique look when viewed from the outside. This is due to the "low-floor entrance" feature included in the design, where part of the floor and doors between the two bogies are "sunken" to a height of from the top of the rails. This provides very easy access to the train, especially when bicycles, wheelchairs, and the like need to be put on the train. This easy entrance is because the from the top of the rails, is also the general height within a few centimeters () of platforms on the Danish railway network. There are some technical differences between the IC2 and the IC3. The most obvious is of course the smaller number of carriages, and other engines (the IC3 has four engines, each delivering approx. ; the IC2 has two engines, each delivering approx. ). Other differences include the way the engines are cooled (the IC3 engines are air-cooled, but due to several technical issues with this system, it were decided to use water-cooled engines), electric-driven AC system (another thing decided after experience with the IC3, which AC system were powered directly from the engines). Although the IC2 shares its physical profile and physical coupling system with the IC3 and the IR4, they are incapable of actually driving as a companion with those two "relatives". This is because the designers of the computer system which transmits the driver's commands to the engines and gearboxes have not been able to come up with a common system for all three train models. Instead, for the different types to work together, a special interface-module is required. This must be built into each trainset (except from the IC3, from which the original command-signal comes). However, due to financial issues, and the fact that it would probably not be used, this module was not included in the trains (although it can easily be added if needed). A total of thirteen IC2-sets were built, all of which are in service and operated by

Lokaltog Lokaltog A/S () is a Denmark, Danish railway company responsible for train operation and related passenger services on nine local railways on the islands of Zealand, Lolland and Falster in Denmark. The company was formed on 1 July 2015 as a merger ...

since 2015.

Øresundtrain

The third and newest of the IC3's offspring is specifically designed for use in the regional traffic in areas surrounding the

Øresund Bridge The Øresund or Öresund Bridge is a combined List of road–rail bridges, railway and motorway cable-stayed bridge across the Øresund strait between Denmark and Sweden. It is the second longest bridge in Europe and combines both roadway and r ...

. The train is operated by both DSB and

SJ Öresund SJ Öresund was a division of SJ AB responsible for the operations of Øresundståg in Sweden. Øresundståg is a passenger train network in the transnational Øresund Region of Denmark and Sweden. On 13 December 2020 SJ Öresund replaced the pr ...

, with the latter being a sister company to

SJ AB SJ is the primary passenger train operator in Sweden. A wholly List of government enterprises of Sweden, state-owned company operated for-profit under market conditions, SJ operates various services across Sweden. SJ's operations include High-spee ...

. Its formation is ET-FT-ET. The train is electrically powered, and can run on both Danish power ( 25 kV, 50 Hz) and Swedish power ( 15 kV, 16 Hz). It is called

Øresundståg Øresundståg (, ) is a passenger train network operated by Transdev in the transnational Øresund Region of Denmark and Sweden. The name is a hybrid of the Danish ''Øresundstog'' and the Swedish ''Öresundståg'', both meaning "Øresund train ...

Contessa by its manufacturer^da, and designated Litra ET in Denmark and X31K in Sweden. Only the front and the cabin are similar to IC3. The wheels, bogies and motors are more similar to Bombardier Regina and each carriage has two bogies. It is used for the regional cross-border traffic called

Øresundståg Øresundståg (, ) is a passenger train network operated by Transdev in the transnational Øresund Region of Denmark and Sweden. The name is a hybrid of the Danish ''Øresundstog'' and the Swedish ''Öresundståg'', both meaning "Øresund train ...

, and the train type is also often called that, these trains are used for some other traffic also.

Accidents and incidents

Fires on the IC3 train sets are not uncommon, with over half of DSB's in service sets having either overheated or suffered from minor burns, however all of these were easy fixes. There have been some incidents where rebuilds were needed. On 28 December 2010, an IC3 train in Israel caught fire due to a technical failure, injuring 121 people. A soldier shot the windows in order to allow the passengers to escape. The cause of the fire was not an electrical short, as first suspected, but a mechanical problem with the

cardan joint A universal joint (also called a universal coupling or U-joint) is a joint or coupling connecting rigid shafts whose axes are inclined to each other. It is commonly used in shafts that transmit rotary motion. It consists of a pair of hinges loc ...

, which is located next to the fuel tank in the train. On 30 December 2010

Israel Railways Israel Railways Ltd. (, ''Rakevet Yisra'el'') is the state-owned principal railway company responsible for all inter-city, commuter, and freight rail transport in Israel. Israel Railways network consists of of track. All its lines are standar ...

decided on an immediate stoppage of all the IC3s in the fleet, pending further investigation. The ramifications of this decision were the closure of several lines and stations, including

Jerusalem Jerusalem is a city in the Southern Levant, on a plateau in the Judaean Mountains between the Mediterranean Sea, Mediterranean and the Dead Sea. It is one of the List of oldest continuously inhabited cities, oldest cities in the world, and ...

and

Dimona Dimona (, ) is an Israeli city in the Negev desert, to the south-east of Beersheba and west of the Dead Sea above the Arabah, Arava valley in the Southern District (Israel), Southern District of Israel. In , its population was . The Shimon Pere ...

and several other suburban lines. Service was resumed on all routes after modifications were approved. On 20 October 2016, DSBs set number 51 caught fire in Odense, damaging the MFA significantly. No one was hurt, and the set was moved the day after. Then the rebuilding began, with a Swedish set donating its body to the damaged MFA unit. It was fitted with new engines and seats. The set was put rolling again in 2018, most notable is that this set was the first to be painted in DSBs newly formed design replacing the grey with red, and the blue lines at the windows, became black. The passenger doors were painted white. Since the set are so far the only set in the new design, many enthusiasts has nicknamed the set “The One and Only”, which slowly has carried over to the personnel as well, although its official name remains “Niels Kjeldsen”.

Notes

References

List of all Danish IC3 units - some with pictures and brief information (Danish)

Details on mechanical train transmissions
{{Swedish railway stock Multiple units of Denmark Diesel multiple units of Sweden DSB multiple units ABB multiple units Diesel multiple units of Israel Bombardier Transportation multiple units Train-related introductions in 1990

General overview

Internet

History

Technical overview

Fleet details

Class MF (IC3)

Class 594.0

Class 594.1

Class 594.2

Israeli IC3

Y2

VIA

AMTRAK

Danish derivatives

IR4 "InterRegional 4"

IC2 "InterCity 2"

Øresundtrain

Accidents and incidents

Notes

See also

References