By David Briginshaw, International Railway Journal; October 5, 2018
ALSTOM’s new range of Avelia high-speed trains got off to a flying start with orders for 28 single-deck Liberty tilting trains from Amtrak in 2016 worth $US 2bn, including long-term technical support and components, and 100 double-deck Horizon trains from French National Railways (SNCF) in July worth €2.7bn.
Production of the Amtrak fleet has already started, following the shipment of the first bodyshell from Alstom’s Savigliano plant in Italy to the United States, where assembly is currently underway at Alstom’s New York state plants in Hornell and Rochester. The first pre-series set will be delivered for trials in 2019 and the first production train is due to enter service on the Boston – New York – Washington DC Northeast Corridor in 2021, replacing the existing Acela trains supplied by Alstom and Bombardier in 2000. Two prototype Avelia Horizon trains will be ready for testing and certification in France in 2021 with delivery of the fleet running from 2023 to 2031.
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