Talent (train)

Talent
A Talent EMU approaching Seefeld in Tirol.
Manufacturer	Bombardier Talbot design by Alexander Neumeister
Number built	more than 830
Specifications
Train length	34.61–66.87 m (113 ft 7 in–219 ft 5 in)
Maximum speed	100–140 km/h (62–87 mph)
Weight	57–116 t (56–114 long tons; 63–128 short tons)
Axle load	12.8–14.1 t (12.6–13.9 long tons; 14.1–15.5 short tons)
Traction system	Diesel-mechanical or Diesel-electric
Power output	630 kW (840 hp) (diesel-mechanical) 1,100 kW (1,500 hp) (diesel-electric) 1,520 kW (2,040 hp) (electric)
Electric system(s)	(?) (electric)
Current collection method	Pantograph (electric)
UIC classification	B'2'B' B'2'2'B' Bo'2'2'2'Bo'

The Talent is a multiple unit railcar manufactured by Bombardier that was developed by Waggonfabrik Talbot in Aachen shortly before the company was acquired by Bombardier in 1995. The name Talent is an acronym in German for TALbot LEichter Nahverkehrs Triebwagen (in English, Talbot light suburban motor-coach).

It comes in a number of variants, including high-floor, low-floor, diesel-mechanical, diesel-hydraulic, diesel-electric, electric, and tilting, and in lengths of two, three, or four carriages. As with most multiple-unit trains, Talent units can run individually, or be coupled together to form longer trains.

Classified as heavy rail according to UIC standards, the Talent is a two-, three- or four-part articulated railcar with Jacobs bogies. Partially as a result of this, the interior of an entire unit is essentially a single, long cabin; it is possible to see or walk from end to end without opening doors or passing through narrower gangways. The sharing of bogies also means that a Talent unit cannot be easily disassembled or rearranged without the assistance of a railway yard. In those variants whose floor is 590 mm (23.2 in) above the rails, this means that the articulation floor is raised, but with ramp access, since it needs to be higher than the wheel diameter, above rail level. In the variants with 800 and 960 mm (31.5 and 37.8 in) floor height, the floor is flat from the first door to the last. The endsections have a raised floor in all variants, because the traction equipment installed underneath requires more space than unpowered bogies.

After a prototype was presented in 1994, the first Talents entered service in 1996. They are used by mainline railways in Germany, Austria and Norway. More than 260 are in service worldwide.