Taipei Metro C301

The Taipei Metro C301 cars are the first electric multiple units to operate on the heavy-capacity lines of the Taipei Rapid Transit System when the Tamsui Line began operations on March 28, 1997. A total of 22 trainsets were built from 1992 to 1994 by the Union Rail Car (URC) Partnership, a Japanese-backed consortium in America, at a cost of US$170 million.^[1][2][3]

Production of the cars were done at the 150,000-square-foot (14,000 m²) Yonkers Plant,^[4] which was well known as formerly owned by Otis Elevator Company where it first built elevators since the company's formation, and the first elevator factory in the world.^[2][5] The factory is now under the Union Rail Car Partnership, consisting of Kawasaki Rail Car, Nissho Iwai American, and North American Transit.^[4] They were the first cars in the Plant to be built for export, and the largest in the United States for over twenty years. Over half of the C301's components were made in America, as part of the Buy American Act requirements.^[4] The original GTO-VVVF propulsion systems (the first 11 trains were since replaced by Bombardier MITRAC IGBT-VVVF propulsion systems) were supplied by Westinghouse and can supply up to 200 horsepower.

The interior of the C301 contains seats in both linear and latitudinal formation. A quarter of them are designated as priority seats. Fireproofing materials allow the train to withstand any fire for up to 45 minutes. Wheelchair spaces are provided for at the start and end of the cars. LED in-train information system is installed which displays the destination and line colour on the exterior, train announcements and next station information in the interior.

Trainset 013/014 was formerly split and modified to serve as 3-car formations to serve on the Xinbeitou Branch Line. When new C371 built in specialised 3-car formations were delivered to Taipei Metro, trainset 013/014 was subsequently rejoined and put back into normal service on Line 2. The sets that formerly served the Xinbeitou Branch Line are currently equipped with IGBT-VVVF inverters.

Serial Number

Each individual car is assigned a four-digit serial number, which range from x001 to x044, where x depends on the carriage type.

• The first digit depends on whether the car is the first, second, or third car from either end of the train, where the first car equals 1, the second car equals 2, and the third car equals 3.
• The other three digits form the train's identification number. A full-length train of six cars consists of two identification numbers, one for the first three cars, and the other the same number plus 1 for the other three, where the smaller number is always an odd number. For example, a train of six cars would have serial numbers 1001, 2001, 3001, 3002, 2002, 1002 respectively.
• TRTC names train set numbers as 01/02, 03/04 etc. instead of 001/002, 003/004 etc. (The number stickers near driver's doors are 2-digit only)

Refurbishment

From 2011–2012, the C301 trains underwent refurbishment and they were fitted with new air-conditioning units and surveillance and fire detection systems, and the original wood-style flooring was replaced with an almost all white flooring. In addition, new multi-color LED in-train information systems were installed above train doors which replaced the previous red colored LED in-train information systems. The first 11 C301 trains also received new IGBT-VVVF propulsion systems from Bombardier Transportation in 2013.

Gallery

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  Front view of the 3rd (middle) car of a C301 train on the Xinbeitou Branch Line

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  Kawasaki HI manufacturer's plate

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  URC manufacturer's plate

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  Priority seating (refurbished interior)

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  New multi-colour LED in-train information system installed in 2012

See also

• List of driverless trains

References

External links

• Kawasaki Heavy industries Products Info