The SNCF Class Z 50000, also known as the 'Francilian', or 'NAT' (for , English: ''New Rail car Transilien'', the project name) is a type of dual-voltage

electric multiple unit 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 o ...

trainset designed in the 2000s. It is used on the

commuter rail Commuter rail or suburban rail is a Passenger train, passenger rail service that primarily operates within a metropolitan area, connecting Commuting, commuters to a Central business district, central city from adjacent suburbs or commuter town ...

system serving

Paris Paris () is the Capital city, capital and List of communes in France with over 20,000 inhabitants, largest city of France. With an estimated population of 2,048,472 residents in January 2025 in an area of more than , Paris is the List of ci ...

and its

Île-de-France The Île-de-France (; ; ) is the most populous of the eighteen regions of France, with an official estimated population of 12,271,794 residents on 1 January 2023. Centered on the capital Paris, it is located in the north-central part of the cou ...

suburbs on the

Transilien Transilien () is the brand name given to the commuter rail and tram-train network operated by SNCF and serving Île-de-France, the region surrounding and including the city of Paris. The network consists of lines Transilien Line H, H, Transilie ...

network. Departing stations are

Gare du Nord The Gare du Nord (; ), officially Paris Nord, is one of the seven large mainline railway station termini in Paris, France. The station is served by trains that run between the capital and northern France via the Paris–Lille railway, as well ...

Gare de l'Est The Gare de l'Est (; English: "Station of the East" or "East station"), officially Paris Est, is one of the seven large mainline railway station termini in Paris, France. It is located in the 10th arrondissement, not far southeast from the Ga ...

and

Gare Saint-Lazare The Gare Saint-Lazare (; ), officially Paris Saint Lazare, is one of the seven large mainline List of Paris railway stations, railway station terminals in Paris, France. It was the first railway station built in Paris, opening in 1837. It mostly ...

. A total of 360 trainsets have either been built or are under construction by

Canadian Canadians () are people identified with the country of Canada. This connection may be residential, legal, historical or cultural. For most Canadians, many (or all) of these connections exist and are collectively the source of their being ''C ...

conglomerate Bombardier at its Crespin, France (near

Valenciennes Valenciennes (, also , , ; ; or ; ) is a communes of France, commune in the Nord (French department), Nord Departments of France, department, Hauts-de-France, France. It lies on the Scheldt () river. Although the city and region experienced ...

) factory since 2006. The first set was placed into regular passenger service on 14 December 2009. The name Francilien is also the demonym for people living in

History

In 2004, the Syndicat des transports d'Île-de-France (STIF, the transit authority for the Paris region until June 2017) began the tendering process for approximately 180 new

trainsets to replace

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 ...

's aging single-deck suburban fleet, including trainsets nicknamed ''“inox”'' (short for ''inoxydable,'' English: ''stainless'' teel (Classes Z 5300, Z 6100, Z 6400) and similar push-pull trainsets known as RIB () and RIO (). The

and STIF requested bids for a train design that could operate on a typical journey of in length, including numerous stops lasting 30 to 40 seconds, and able to operate from either or

overhead catenary An overhead line or overhead wire is an electrical cable that is used to transmit electrical energy to electric locomotives, Electric multiple unit, electric multiple units, trolleybuses or trams. The generic term used by the International Union ...

electrification.

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 ...

, Bombardier, and

Siemens Siemens AG ( ) is a German multinational technology conglomerate. It is focused on industrial automation, building automation, rail transport and health technology. Siemens is the largest engineering company in Europe, and holds the positi ...

all submitted bids for the project. In 2006,

(French Railway Company) and Syndicat des transports d'Île-de-France (STIF, the transit authority for the Paris region until June 2017) awarded the contract to ''Bombardier'' with a firm order for 172 ‘Francilien’ trainsets at a cost of €1.85 billion, with an option for 200 more. ''Bombardier'' presented the Spacium vehicle at Crespin on 6 February 2009. The first service operated by a ''Francilien'' train was on Transilien Line H from Paris Gare du Nord to Luzarches on Sunday 13 December 2009. As of December 2018, 360 trainsets had been ordered, and about 240 were in active service.

Design

Bombardier vehicle design is articulated using Jakobs bogies between the carriages. Seating is in a 3+2 layout giving over 400 seats in a seven-car unit, over 500 in an eight-car set. Total capacity exceeds 800 (or 1,000 in eight-car trains) including standing passengers at . The vehicle's width is , which is wider than previous trains, achieved by having a relatively short car length of . The inter-carriage passages have wide, open gangway connections, limiting

bottleneck Bottleneck may refer to: * the narrowed portion (neck) of a bottle Science and technology * Bottleneck (engineering), where the performance of an entire system is limited by a single component * Bottleneck (network), in a communication network * ...

ing. All interior lights are provided by

light-emitting diode A light-emitting diode (LED) is a semiconductor device that emits light when current flows through it. Electrons in the semiconductor recombine with electron holes, releasing energy in the form of photons. The color of the light (corre ...

s (LED), so power consumption is lessened. Technical details: SPACIUM Environmental Product Description.

Technical characteristics

The dual-current capacity (1,500 volts DC and 25,000 volts AC) enables the train to serve the entire Ile-de-France network. Its electrical consumption is 20% lower than that of equipment in circulation in 2009. The two traction motors per bogie are of the three-phase asynchronous type; they operate at a voltage of 380 volts - 50 hertz. The motorization is distributed over five motor bogies, located at each end, in line with the driving cabs, and between cars 2 and 3, 3 and 4 and 6 and 7 (in the long version) or 5 and 6 (in the short). A train is divided into two distinct sets of traction chain, cars 1 to 4 on the one hand and cars 6 to 8 on the other hand. Each of these half-elements has two traction chains in parallel, redundancy which reduces the risk of unavailability in the event of a breakdown. The Z 50000 are distinguished by another specific feature: in normal operation, only 80% of the available power, or for one element, is used. In the event of failure of one of the engine blocks, the other engines are actuated at 100% in order to ensure the normal operation of the train. The acceleration reaches for the eight-cell configuration and for the seven-cell configuration. The deceleration reaches during service braking.

Formations

As of 7 June 2025, 360 Z50000 trainsets (01H to 360L).

8 cars sets

The 8-cars trainsets are formed as shown below, with five motorised cars and three non-powered trailer cars (5M3T) more precisely with 5 motorized bogies jacobs and 4 trailer bogies. They are based at the Noisy le Sec (Line E and P), and les Joncherolles /St Denis (Line H and K) depot. * < or > show a pantograph. Cars 2 and 7 were each equipped with one pantograph. *The car 3 is called ZZ because it is supported by two motorized Jacobs bogies(it's the only intermediate car that's like this)

7 cars sets

The 7-cars trainsets are formed as shown below, with three motorised cars and two non-powered trailer cars (5M2T) more precisely with 5 motorized bogies jacobs and 3 trailer bogies. They are based at Levallois (Line L), and le Val Notre Dame/Argenteuil (Line J) depot. * < or > show a pantograph. Cars 2 and 9 were each equipped with one pantograph. *The car 3 is called ZZ because it is supported by two motorized Jacobs bogies(it's the only intermediate car that's like this)

Fleet

The number of Z50000 trainsets is 339 (at the 1st March 2022). They are on operations on the E, H, J, K, L and P Line. * Listing Fleet Z50000 (in french)

Photo gallery

File:Z 50000 - Intérieur d'un élément en courbe.jpg, Interior, showing 3+2 seating File:Z50000 12dec2009 IMG 6066.jpg, Interior, showing open gangway connection File:Z50000 12dec2009 IMG 6002.jpg, Gap filler allowing easy access for wheelchair users File:Z 50000 — SIVE.2.jpg, SIVE dynamic passenger information screens File:50016 Poste de conduite aux Joncherolles.jpg, Operator's cab File:Z50000 sncf ligneH.jpg, Z 50000 in the new

Île-de-France Mobilités Île-de-France Mobilités (IDFM) is the governmental authority ( EPA) that controls and coordinates the different companies operating the Paris-area public transport network and the rest of the Île-de-France region. In this capacity, it issu ...

livery on Transilien Line H at Bessancourt station File:Z50000 207L en gare de Cergy Saint Christophe.jpg, Z 50000 in the older Carmillon livery on Transilien Line L at Cergy-Saint-Christophe station

Notes

References

Literature

* * * * * {{SNCF units Z 50000 Bombardier Transportation multiple units Articulated passenger trains Electric multiple units of France Train-related introductions in 2009 25 kV AC multiple units 1500 V DC multiple units of France