Ultra Low Floor
Encyclopedia
Tram
A tram is a passenger rail vehicle which runs on tracks along public urban streets and also sometimes on separate rights of way. It may also run between cities and/or towns , and/or partially grade separated even in the cities...
operating in Vienna
Vienna
Vienna is the capital and largest city of the Republic of Austria and one of the nine states of Austria. Vienna is Austria's primary city, with a population of about 1.723 million , and is by far the largest city in Austria, as well as its cultural, economic, and political centre...
, Austria
Austria
Austria , officially the Republic of Austria , is a landlocked country of roughly 8.4 million people in Central Europe. It is bordered by the Czech Republic and Germany to the north, Slovakia and Hungary to the east, Slovenia and Italy to the south, and Switzerland and Liechtenstein to the...
and Oradea
Oradea
Oradea is the capital city of Bihor County, in the Crișana region of north-western Romania. The city has a population of 204,477, according to the 2009 estimates. The wider Oradea metropolitan area has a total population of 245,832.-Geography:...
, Romania
Romania
Romania is a country located at the crossroads of Central and Southeastern Europe, on the Lower Danube, within and outside the Carpathian arch, bordering on the Black Sea...
, with the lowest floor-height of any such vehicle. In contrast to other low-floor trams, the floor in the interior of ULF is at sidewalk height (about 18 cm or 7 inches above the road surface), which makes access to trams easy for passengers in wheelchairs or with baby carriages. This configuration required a new undercarriage. The axles had to be replaced by a complicated electronic steering of the traction motor
Traction motor
Traction motor refers to an electric motor providing the primary rotational torque of a machine, usually for conversion into linear motion ....
s. Auxiliary devices are installed largely under the car’s roof.
The ULF technology went into testing in the early 1990s. Since 1998, ULFs have been in use on Vienna's tram network
Trams in Vienna
The Vienna tramway network is a vital part of the public transport system in Vienna, capital city of Austria. In operation since 1865, the network reached its greatest extent during the interwar period . Today, it is still one of world's largest tram networks, at about in total length.The trams...
, built by a consortium composed of Siemens
Siemens AG
Siemens AG is a German multinational conglomerate company headquartered in Munich, Germany. It is the largest Europe-based electronics and electrical engineering company....
and Elin in Vienna. As of mid-2008, 302 cars were in operation (150 cars since mid-2006, and another 152 as of 2007).
Siemens ULF trams were introduced in Oradea
Oradea
Oradea is the capital city of Bihor County, in the Crișana region of north-western Romania. The city has a population of 204,477, according to the 2009 estimates. The wider Oradea metropolitan area has a total population of 245,832.-Geography:...
, Romania
Romania
Romania is a country located at the crossroads of Central and Southeastern Europe, on the Lower Danube, within and outside the Carpathian arch, bordering on the Black Sea...
on 24 April 2008.
Technical specifications
| City / Operator | Type designation | Built in | Number of vehicles | Length | Width | Weight (empty) | Maximum power |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Vienna Vienna Vienna is the capital and largest city of the Republic of Austria and one of the nine states of Austria. Vienna is Austria's primary city, with a population of about 1.723 million , and is by far the largest city in Austria, as well as its cultural, economic, and political centre... , Austria Austria Austria , officially the Republic of Austria , is a landlocked country of roughly 8.4 million people in Central Europe. It is bordered by the Czech Republic and Germany to the north, Slovakia and Hungary to the east, Slovenia and Italy to the south, and Switzerland and Liechtenstein to the... /Wiener Linien Wiener Linien Wiener Linien are the company running the largest part of the public transit network in the city of Vienna, Austria. They are part of the city corporation Wiener Stadtwerke Holding AG.- Governing structure and statistics :... |
A | 1995 (prototype), 1997 | 50 | 24.20 | 2.40 | 30 t | 6 x 60 kW |
| Vienna Vienna Vienna is the capital and largest city of the Republic of Austria and one of the nine states of Austria. Vienna is Austria's primary city, with a population of about 1.723 million , and is by far the largest city in Austria, as well as its cultural, economic, and political centre... , Austria Austria Austria , officially the Republic of Austria , is a landlocked country of roughly 8.4 million people in Central Europe. It is bordered by the Czech Republic and Germany to the north, Slovakia and Hungary to the east, Slovenia and Italy to the south, and Switzerland and Liechtenstein to the... /Wiener Linien Wiener Linien Wiener Linien are the company running the largest part of the public transit network in the city of Vienna, Austria. They are part of the city corporation Wiener Stadtwerke Holding AG.- Governing structure and statistics :... |
A1 | 2007– | 80 | 24.20 | 2.40 | 30 t | 6 x 36 kW |
| Vienna Vienna Vienna is the capital and largest city of the Republic of Austria and one of the nine states of Austria. Vienna is Austria's primary city, with a population of about 1.723 million , and is by far the largest city in Austria, as well as its cultural, economic, and political centre... , Austria Austria Austria , officially the Republic of Austria , is a landlocked country of roughly 8.4 million people in Central Europe. It is bordered by the Czech Republic and Germany to the north, Slovakia and Hungary to the east, Slovenia and Italy to the south, and Switzerland and Liechtenstein to the... /Wiener Linien Wiener Linien Wiener Linien are the company running the largest part of the public transit network in the city of Vienna, Austria. They are part of the city corporation Wiener Stadtwerke Holding AG.- Governing structure and statistics :... |
B | 1995 (prototype), 1998 | 100 | 35.30 | 2.40 | 43 t | 8 x 60 kW |
| Vienna Vienna Vienna is the capital and largest city of the Republic of Austria and one of the nine states of Austria. Vienna is Austria's primary city, with a population of about 1.723 million , and is by far the largest city in Austria, as well as its cultural, economic, and political centre... , Austria Austria Austria , officially the Republic of Austria , is a landlocked country of roughly 8.4 million people in Central Europe. It is bordered by the Czech Republic and Germany to the north, Slovakia and Hungary to the east, Slovenia and Italy to the south, and Switzerland and Liechtenstein to the... /Wiener Linien Wiener Linien Wiener Linien are the company running the largest part of the public transit network in the city of Vienna, Austria. They are part of the city corporation Wiener Stadtwerke Holding AG.- Governing structure and statistics :... |
B1 | 2009– | 70 | 35.30 | 2.40 | 43 t | 8 x 36 kW |
| Oradea Oradea Oradea is the capital city of Bihor County, in the Crișana region of north-western Romania. The city has a population of 204,477, according to the 2009 estimates. The wider Oradea metropolitan area has a total population of 245,832.-Geography:... , Romania Romania Romania is a country located at the crossroads of Central and Southeastern Europe, on the Lower Danube, within and outside the Carpathian arch, bordering on the Black Sea... / OTL |
A1 | 2008–2009 | 10 | 24.20 | 2.40 | 30 t |