Manufacturer Siemens AG/DUEWAG Axle arrangement A+2+A | Year(s) of manufacture 1995–1999 | |
 | ||
Quantity DKB/Rurtalbahn: 17
Vogtlandbahn: 18
Nærumbanen: 4 Track gauge 1,435 mm (4 ft 8 ⁄2 in) standard gauge Length over couplers 24,800 mm (81 ft 4 ⁄8 in) | ||
The RegioSprinter is a German diesel railcar built by Siemens-Duewag for rapid regional railway services. Originally the RegioSprinter was designated as a Regional Combustion-engined Railbus (Regional-Verbrennungstriebwagen or RVT) by Duewag AG.
Contents
Developed as prototypes for fast regional railway services on the plains, the RegioSprinter still has the fastest acceleration of any multiple unit or railbus in Germany. Due to several technical and conceptual defect, however, only very few were built. Based on their experience with the Regiosprinter Siemens developed its successor, the Desiro, which was initially marketed as the Regiosprinter 2.
In 1999, all the Vogtlandbahn vehicles were converted to meet tramway regulations (BO Strab), in order to be able to transfer to a tram line in the centre of Zwickau.
Design
The vehicles are designed with three sections. In the two, single-axled end modules are the driver's cabs and the drive units like those on trams. In the middle is a twin-axled, unmotored module.
Two thirds of the vehicle has a low floor. The seats are arranged in a 2+3 configuration, there is no toilet due to the short journey distances envisaged. Late the Vogtlandbahn had to fit all its vehicles with toilets, because otherwise cross-border services to the Czech Republic would not have been possible.
Rurtalbahn
In 1995 the Dürener Kreisbahn bought a total of 17 RegioSprinter for the Rurtalbahn (Rur Valley Railway), which were deployed to the two sections of line radiating from Düren, replacing the Uerdingen railbuses. Today (as at 2006), RegioSprinter are used on the following lines:
Under contract to DB Regio NRW there is also a railbus in service on the RB 39 route (Schwalm-Nette-Bahn) between Mönchengladbach Hbf and Dalheim.
Because the vehicle fleet of the Rur Valley railway has a large reserve, in past years RegioSprinters from this company have helped out on other private railways, for example on the Dortmund-Märkischen Eisenbahn, the Nord-Ostsee-Bahn and the VIAS.
Vogtlandbahn
From 1996 the Vogtlandbahn bought a total of 18 vehicles for use on the lines from Zwickau to Adorf/Vogtl. and Reichenbach im Vogtl. to Klingenthal. Because the completion of these routes was repeatedly delayed after their refurbishment, the new vehicles initially worked the line from Zwickau to Bad Brambach. At present the railbuses are in services on the following Vogtlandbahn lines:
Until the timetable change in December 2006 the Vogtlandbahn's RegioSprinters were also on duty on the VB 7 line between Schönberg/Vogtland and Schleiz West. Services on this route were withdrawn on 9 December 2006 by the local public transport company of the free state of Thuringia.
Moreover, in 2006 two of the railbuses (VT 36 and VT 39) were hired to the Prignitz railway, which used them on their lines in the western Ruhrgebiet due to a shortage of stock.
Nærumbanen (Denmark)
In 1999 the Nærumbanen (LNJ) in the Copenhagen area bought four RegioSprinter railbuses and deployed them on the line between Nærum and Jægersborg.
Since 2002 operations have been run by Lokalbanen A/S (LB), which took over several smaller railway companies in the Copenhagen area. The railbuses were owned at the time by the Hovedstadens Lokalbaner, which hired them to the LB.