The Anonymous Widower

Hydrogen-Powered Trains To Be Introduced In Northern Italy

The title of this post, is the same as that of this article on Fuel Cell Works.

These three paragraphs introduce the project.

Residents and visitors to Valcamonica, an Alpine region in northern Italy, will be able to ride hydrogen-powered trains from next year.

The pioneering project, the first of its kind in Italy and supported by an investment of 367 million euros ($396 million), marks a significant adoption of hydrogen fuel for a rail line, despite the high production and operational costs.

The region currently uses polluting diesel trains, which will be replaced by 14 zero-emission hydrogen-powered trains made in Italy by a unit of French group Alstom

The trains will run on the Brescia–Edolo railway, which has this Wikipedia entry.

This OpenRailwayMap shows the Northern part of the railway.

Note.

  1. Edolo station is indicated by the blue arrow at the top of the map.
  2. The Brescia–Edolo railway is indicated by the yellow line.
  3. Stations are indicated by blue lettering.
  4. Iseo is the station in the South-West corner of the map.
  5. Click the map to show it to a larger scale.

This second OpenRailwayMap shows the Southern part of the railway to the same scale.

Note.

  2. The Brescia–Edolo railway is indicated by the yellow line.
  3. The Venice-Milan railway is indiated by the orange line across the bottom of the map.
  4. Stations are indicated by blue lettering.
  5. Iseo station is in the South-West corner of the map.
  6. Brescia station is in the South-East corner of the map on the Venice-Milan railway.
  7. Click the map to show it to a larger scale.

It looks to me, that the Brescia–Edolo railway could be a day-out if you were having a holiday in Milan, Venice or Verona.

  • The railway is a single track railway.
  • It appears to go through the mountains.
  • Currently, it is diesel powered, but I suspect running hydrogen trains on the route will turn it into a major tourist attraction.

Could other rail routes attract visitors, by going for zero-carbon traction using hydrogen?

In the UK, these are surely six of many possibilities.

  • Settle and Carlisle
  • Marshlink Line
  • Mid-Cornwall Metro
  • Norwich and Sheringham
  • Sheffield and Huddersfield
  • Mid-Cornwall Metro
  • Uckfield Branch

Infrastructure costs would just need a hydrogen supply to be arranged.

Conclusion

You can always trust the Italians to use a stylish solution.

March 28, 2025 Posted by | Hydrogen, Transport/Travel | , , , , , , , , | Leave a comment