Scottish hydrogen train to debut at Glasgow’s COP26
A consortium of engineering and technology firms is building Scotland’s first hydrogen powered train, which is set to be ready for Glasgow’s COP26 climate conference in November.
A retired ScotRail Class 314 electric set was transported by road from its depot in Glasgow to the Bo’ness & Kinneil Railway where it will be converted to hydrogen-powered - a cleaner, greener alternative to diesel for non-electrified routes.
The work is part of a Scottish Enterprise project, in partnership with Transport Scotland and the University of St Andrews’ Hydrogen Accelerator, to bring skills for the future of the rail industry into the Scottish supply chain and create opportunities for businesses based here.
Transport Secretary Michael Matheson said: “This project has the potential to be a game changer for the future of Scotland’s rail rolling stock. “Our Rail Decarbonisation Action Plan sets out to make our passenger railways emissions free by 2035, but to maximise our climate change ambitions, there is also a requirement to look at what we do with retired stock. If we can bring those back into use in a carbon neutral way, there are huge climate gains to be made.”
For further information:
https://www.theengineer.co.uk/scottish-hydrogen-train-debut-glasgow-cop26/
https://www.scottish-enterprise-mediacentre.com/news/greener-train-project-moves-to-next-phase