Thalys High-Speed Trains, Europe

Thalys is a cross-border high-speed passenger operation centred on Brussels Midi station, jointly offered by Belgian, French, Dutch and German railways. Emerging from a SNCF/SNCB venture, Westrail International, founded in 1995, Thalys services on the extended network began in late 1997 with the opening of Belgium's first high-speed line. The distinctive maroon TGV-derived Thalys trains have become a familiar sight and distinctive brand in western European rail operations. The Thalys name has no specific meaning beyond the service itself, created for distinctiveness yet without specific identification with any of the countries served.

With the gradual incorporation of more high-speed lines and the relatively short distances between the cities on their respective networks, Thalys and the other main international European rail brand, Eurostar, have been very successful in wresting market share from airlines. For the business user in particular, the centre-to-centre timings allow for return trips in a day between key commercial centres, including the main destinations at the extremes of the regular Thalys operation, Paris, Brussels, Amsterdam and KŚln.

THE PROJECT

With the completion of the 88km (55 mile) LGV Belge high-speed line, the centres of Paris and Brussels were brought within 90 minutes of each other by rail.

A second line from Brussels via Liège to the German border near Aachen should be completed by late 2007, although its use by high-speed trains such as Thalys will not begin immediately.

Although the very first Thalys services worked to Amsterdam from 1996, these are destined to remain over the relatively slow 'classic' 1,500V dc lines within the Netherlands due to the delays in the commissioning of the new Dutch HSL Zuid Antwerpen-Rotterdam-Amsterdam line.

In addition to via Brussels, Thalys regular services also operate through Belgium via the southern Namur-Charleroi-Mons route, also Brussels-Ostende. Seasonal timetabling extends to the Alps and the south of France via the Paris Charles de Gaulle/Marne la Vallée line. Trains run hourly between Paris and Brussels, with many dividing there to serve Amsterdam and Köln

INFRASTRUCTURE

Although Thalys was founded upon the potential for reduced journey times opened up by the LGV Nord and the first Belgian high-speed line, subsequent developments have been more piecemeal. The Leuven-Liège section opened in 2003 and is used by Thalys trains, two-hourly ICE3 services from Germany to Brussels and, unusually for this type of line, certain conventional locomotive-hauled SNCB InterCity trains on the Oostende-Liège-Eupen route.

Due to open later is the more difficult Liège-Aachen section which passes through the hilly and densely wooded Ardennes area. This 27km (16 mile), 220km/h (125mph) cut-off high-speed line will greatly assist the acceleration of Thalys and ICE services. New engineering works are needed, including a 6km (3.7 mile) tunnel, as well as the rebuilding of the Eupen-Aachen section of the existing main line for higher speeds. A new €200m station, designed by celebrated architect Santiago Calatrava, is to replace the Liège Guillemins. The steeply-graded approaches to Liège are being upgraded.

Further reductions will be possible with the opening of the Liège -Welkenraedt high-speed line. This will be complemented over the German border by the completed quadrupling and upgrading the Aachen-Cologne 'classic' line to 230km/h Ausbaustrecke standards east of Düren. Paris-Kö times should be cut to around three hours.

The former double-track line to Brussels has been widened to four tracks and Liège-Aachen upgraded. The 33km (20.5 mile) Brussels-Leuven line was rebuilt for 200km/h (125mph) operation and 7km (4.4 miles) from Schaarbeek to Zaventem increased from three to four tracks, with a new pair of tracks laid to Leuven.Upgrading the Brussels-Antwerp section for 160km/h (100mph) was completed in 2000.

Relative to improvements elsewhere, accelerating services on the northern arm of Thalys operations into the Netherlands has proven to be problematic. With an interim domestic service operating with locos and hauled stock services on HSL Zuid from 2007, introduction of Thalys on this route has been further delayed by fitting of compatible signal equipment to the trains. Although Antwerpen Centraal had been converted into a through station by 2007, Thalys services have continued to serve the city at Berchem station only.

ROLLING STOCK

Thalys operates a fleet of 27 TGV based trains, all built by Alstom. There are 17 four-voltage trains designated PBKA (Paris-Brussels-Köln-Amsterdam), dating from the late 1990s. They mate new generation TGV Duplex style power cars with standard TGV articulated trailers.

In addition, ten second-generation tri-voltage TGV Réseau sets (with 25kV AC, 3kV DC and 1.5kV DC capability), called PBA (Paris-Brussels-Amsterdam) trains, were reallocated to the service from SNCF's own fleet. As with other TGV trains, Thalys run at 300kmh (186mph). Each 200m-long set has 377 seats (120 in Confort 1/first class), and can run in multiple.

The Paris-Brussels Thalys service is the most intensive between two European capitals, with 28 trains in each direction per day, half-hourly on weekdays. Following a decade in service, a mid-life refurbishment programme has been drawn up ahead of the Thalys sets being used on the new HSL Zuid line. SNCF's Hellemmes works near Lille, France was chosen to carry out the refurbishment, which will include fitting ETCS Level 2 signalling equipment for operation on HSL Zuid from 2008.

DB Class 406 ICE3M multi-voltage EMUs have linked Brussels with Köln and Frankfurt several times a day since December 2002, replacing traditional locomotive-hauled international trains.

Plans to extend Paris Thalys services through to Frankfurt via the Köln-Frankfurt Neubaustrecke, which opened in December 2002, were shelved because TGV trains could not maintain 300km/h line speeds using 15kV AC on the steeply-graded route.

SIGNALLING / COMMUNICATIONS

Belgium's high-speed railways use the French TVM430 system, dispensing with the need for lineside signals. Train drivers receive information about the route ahead and the maximum speed they can run at from in-cab equipment. However, on classic routes standard lineside signalling is used.

Thalys PBKA use a mixture of new and classic routes and are equipped to operate on seven different signalling systems on their journeys between Paris, Belgium, Holland and Germany. To accommodate the use of Thalys sets on the new HSL Zuid line, all trains are to be fitted with European Train Control System Level 2 (ETCS), the first in 2007. PBA sets will be equipped first, the remainder, including the PBKA sets, by 2009.

Consistent with its positioning relative to the business market and airline competition, Thalys places an emphasis on long-term customer engagement and repeat trade through its Cybelys membership and Lys Card schemes. Electronic ticketing and internet/telephone information systems feature prominently in their operation. Thalys was a founding partner in the Railteam consortium launched in 2007 to promote rail operations across the high-speed European network.

THE FUTURE

Passenger growth has been spectacular since the opening of the LGV Nord-Europe and Belge high-speed lines. Trains run hourly between Paris and Brussels, with many dividing there to serve Amsterdam and Cologne. With demand likely to increase when journey times reduce further, Thalys is considering increasing capacity. Ideas include double-deck TGV Duplex trailers, as used by SNCF, and greater service frequency. However, legal challenges and construction problems have delayed the opening of HSL Zuid to Thalys services until at least 2008.

The Thalys International partnership increased in 2007, with German operator DB taking a 10% share. The perceived quality of the overall service has been boosted by the rebuild of the Brussels Midi hub, with similar improvements apparent in Antwerpen and Liège. With the proportion of its routes suitable for 300km/h operation to grow significantly in the near future, a high level of punctuality and customer satisfaction, Thalys seems well positioned to build on its successes of the past decade.