CRASHWORTHY RAIL VEHICLES - RECOMMENDATIONS FOR MANUFACTURERS AND OPERATORS

The article discusses the SAFETRAIN Project sponsored by the European Union (EU) and UIC on train crashworthiness, vehicle design and occupant protection. The conclusions and recommendations of the project were tabled for the design of crashworthiness of the vehicles that were intended for railways and for the railway industry. The conclusions and recommendations of the SAFETRAIN project can be achieved by a progressive procurement of crashworthy vehicles provided that account is taken of the specific operating conditions. The article sets out the conclusions and recommendations of the SAFETRAIN project for the development of passive safety for vehicle design and validation by means of a number of examples selected from the SAFETRAIN project. Also discussed is SAFETRAM that is studying crashworthy structures for light rail vehicles, mainly the CITY Tram which operates only in a town and the Periurban Tram which connects the city center and the region.