Original subtitles

Narrator: Racing across Italy at 220 miles per hour...

(whistle blows)

...Is a $38 million super machine.

The italians call it the ferrari train.

Connecting milan, rome, and naples, the italo agv

Is europe's fastest passenger service.

What makes it so fast

And what stops it from hurtling off the track

As it speeds passengers from station to station?

From the intelligent roof-top power supply

That feeds this beast with 25,000 volts of electricity

To the innovative electric engines

That propel it up the steepest inclines...

We unlock the engineering secrets

To reveal what it takes to build the ultimate super train.

-- Captions by vitac -- www.Vitac.Com

Captions paid for by discovery communications

Italy --

A nation of 60 million people all in a rush to get somewhere.

Few places are busier than the city of milan,

Italy's premiere business hub.

♪

Every day, more than 320,000 people travel

Through milan's central station.

They need fast, reliable transportation

To industrial cities in the north

And the capital of rome in the south.

This is the machine they rely on to keep their day on track...

...The italo agv.

With a maximum operating speed of 223 miles per hour,

This is the fastest train in europe.

Each train costs $38 million to build.

The company that runs the train, italo,

Has a fleet that services 21 italian cities,

Running an average of 54 services

Between milan and rome each day.

A high-tech control center guides these advanced trains

Along the tracks,

While engineers work 24/7 to keep them maintained.

To achieve this mission, the agv train,

An acronym for autmotrice à grande vitesse,

Meaning "high-speed, self-propelled,"

Is built with innovative technology.

Electric motors with power

Equivalent to a formula one racecar,

Drive the train up inclines at full speed.

A network of intelligent cables channel 25,000 volts

Into the train's power system.

Ingenious friction-boosting technology helps the train

Maintain grip on the wet and greasy tracks.

All these elements combine to make the agv

The ultimate high-speed train.

Today, the man at the controls of this super train

Is driver dennis la raia.

It's 7:53 a.M.

♪

Dennis has just half an hour

To complete his pre-flight checks.

His mission today is to safely transport 460 passengers

Nearly 375 miles from milan to rome

In 3 hours and 30 minutes.

And italo takes schedules

And first-class service very seriously.

Breakdowns, late arrivals, and uncomfortable rides

Risk damaging the operator's reputation.

It's critical dennis gets his train to rome on time.

But his machine must cover nearly 375 miles

Of challenging track to reach its final destination.

Dennis must guide the train along a high-speed track

Through the suburbs of milan

And across northern Italy...

Before stopping at reggio emilia.

The route crosses the apennines and through tunnels,

Stopping in florence

Before negotiating the web of suburban train lines

That lie north of the capital

To reach rome central station

3 hours and 30 minutes after leaving milan.

♪

8:09 a.M.

Hundreds of passengers in milan central's busy concourse

File onto platform 6 and board dennis' agv train.

8:12 a.M.

375 miles south in rome,

Italo's control room tracks the position of every agv.

Operations director sofia apadul must ensure every train

Is ready for dispatch.

(telephone rings)

♪

The train departs right on time at 8:35 a.M.

As the on-board crew serves passengers breakfast,

Dennis turns up power on the train's 10 electric motors.

This is a machine that is built to go fast.

With a top operational speed of 223 miles per hour,

It's europe's fastest passenger train.

And everybody on board expect it to live up to that promise.

The first challenge for dennis is to keep the train

Running fast along all sections of the route to rome.

This will be no simple task.

Large sections of track climb hills,

And these inclines slow down traditional trains.

Many passenger trains are pulled

By a single locomotive at the front...

Or pushed and pulled at the same time

With a second locomotive, adding power from the rear.

This standard configuration is fast on flat terrain

But can rapidly lose speed up hills.

When climbing inclines,

Train cars in the middle lose forward momentum

And pull back on the locomotive.

This slows the train.

When the locomotives increase their power and accelerate,

The lagging carriages are brought back up to speed,

But the train loses valuable time.

♪

The engineers who built this agv super train

Designed an ingenious solution

To help power this machine up inclines.

This warehouse in southern Italy

Is where workers maintain italo's 25-strong agv fleet.

Francesco fidanza leads the team responsible for keeping

Every italo train running.

A critical inspection of this train's set of wheels

Called bogeys

Reveals the machine's secret for staying fast.

Innovative engineers lost the traditional

Two-locomotive design

And decided to turn every train car into a locomotive

To maintain this machine's momentum up inclines.

They fit a pair of state-of-the-art motors

To all 12 of the train's bogeys.

Each motor has the equivalent horsepower

Of a formula one racecar.

The system is called distributed power.

Distributed power spreads out the agv's thrust

Along the length of a train.

This allows the train to maintain a constant speed

So none of its carriages will lose momentum

And drag the train back when going up hill.

Each of the bogey's motors drive a pair of the agv's wheels.

With each set of wheels being powered separately,

Every carriage is able to pull its own weight,

Boosting the train up inclines with no drop in speed.

So the agv stays fast along high-speed sections of track.

Now 20 miles into the journey, the train is right on schedule.

Driver dennis puts the pedal to the metal,

Accelerating the train to its top speed of 223 miles per hour.

But to reach rome on time,

Dennis must keep the over 880,000-pound train

Close to full speed.

And at this rate, it's a complicated maneuver.

What technology keeps the agv fed

With 25,000 volts of electricity?

And what is this train's secret to staying on the rails?

♪

Narrator: In northern Italy, the italo agv high-speed train

Is nearly a quarter of the way

Into its journey from milan to rome.

Onboard, 460 passengers need to arrive

In Italy's capital on time.

The company stakes its reputation on each train

Reaching its destination on time,

And this one has exactly three hours

And 30 minutes to achieve its mission.

90 miles into the trip,

Driver dennis makes a stop at reggio emilia to drop off

And pick up new passengers.

It's the job of train manager angelo pansera

To get 70 new passengers aboard in just 2 minutes.

It's not as easy as it sounds.

An error causes the train's cars to be incorrectly numbered.

Confused passengers struggle to find their seats,

And the clock is ticking.

Once all passengers are onboard,

Dennis powers his supertrain towards rome,

And angelo can get back to business as usual.

But the delay causes the train to be

Two minutes behind schedule.

For dennis' agv to pick up pace and reach rome on time,

The train must be fed with a reliable stream

Of electric power.

The italo agv's speed comes from 25,000 volts of electricity.

It passes through overhead cables

That are strung above the track.

The electricity powers the train's 10 motors

And all its onboard systems.

Electricity flows from the cables to the train

Through steel arms called pantographs.

Keeping the pantograph in contact with the train

While traveling at 223 miles per hour

Is a huge engineering challenge.

♪

The connection between the cables and pantographs

Must be perfect.

The cables have a natural sag,

While small bumps occur along the course of the track.

These two variables affect the distance

Between the train and its power source.

If the pantograph presses too hard

Or is misaligned with the cables,

It could damage valuable infrastructure

Or destroy the pantograph itself.

If the pantograph loses contact,

Electricity could arc across the gap

Between the conductor and the cable.

This could potentially trigger a fire

And endanger the passengers and crew,

And there are recent examples of all of these failures.

This footage from a track-monitoring car in germany

Shows what can happen when a pantograph is broken.

The steel arm disintegrates and brings down overhead cables,

Causing many thousands of dollars of damage.

While sometimes bad weather, such as ice,

Prevents a perfect connection,

An electricity arcs between pantograph and cable.

And, in extreme circumstances,

Electrical arcing causes a short-circuit.

This footage shows how electrical overloads

Can result in train cars being set on fire.

♪

To ensure pantographs on dennis' train stay in perfect contact,

The agv's engineers built a simple but ingenious solution

Into this machine.

♪

The key to the pantograph

Maintaining exactly the right contact

With the overhead wires is hidden inside its base.

A pneumatic cylinder pulls down on the pantograph's steel arm

With the optimum pressure.

The system is computer-controlled.

It intelligently adjusts the pantograph's position relative

To cable to ensure the articulated arms

Don't crash into or pull away from the cable.

♪

The pantograph's pneumatic cylinders

Guarantee dennis' train

Has a safe and constant power supply,

But engineers can't prevent everyday wear and tear.

Friction from the overhead cable degrades

The pantograph over time.

This can increase the danger of mechanical breakdown,

Destroying any chance

Dennis' train has of reaching rome on time.

Italo's fleet of machines undergoes regular checks here

At the train's maintenance depot in southern Italy

To ensure all the pantographs are in full working order.

Engineer francesco fidanza must ensure his team remains

Protected from 25,000 volts of electricity

As they gear up for today's inspection.

With the train locked down, the maintenance crew gets busy.

This nearly five-foot-long strip of graphite,

Fixed to the leading edge of the pantograph,

Is the train's secret to beating damaged caused by friction.

Graphite is heat-resistant and conducts electricity.

The strip wears away, protecting both the overhead cables

And the pantograph's metal frame from damage.

Every 4,660 miles, engineers check that the graphite strips

Are still thick enough to be safe.

If not, there's the possibility they could damage power lines

And start a fire.

The maintenance crew removes any rough edges from the strip

To improve contact with the cables before the train

Leaves the warehouse to re-enter service.

♪

It's the ingenious graphite strips

Built into the agv that means dennis can draw down

7,500 kilowatts of electricity into the train's 10 motors,

Power his passengers towards rome

At 223 miles per hour.

But up ahead, a new challenge awaits...

...The apennine mountains.

Here, the track bends around tight corners,

And the terrain is uneven,

So passing over dozens of bridges

And viaducts makes for a very bumpy journey.

How does this supertrain beat topography

And uneven track to guarantee a smooth ride?

And what's its engineering secret for staying on the rails

While traveling at full speed?

♪

Narrator: In Italy, the agv is 135 miles

Into its journey from milan to rome.

The passengers onboard expect

To reach their destination on time.

The train's operator, italo,

Enforces a policy of never being more than five minutes late.

To deliver on that promise,

This machine is built for one thing -- speed.

The ultimate fast-passenger train

Was built by one of the world's

Most advanced train construction companies.

French manufacturer alstom's 30 worldwide production lines

Build state-of-the-art locomotives and train cars.

To make their train shells,

Machines fitted with oxy acetylene

Cut 43,000 square feet of paneling

From sheets of super-thin aluminum.

The metal's light weight makes the train fast.

The wheels for the carriages are made

From specialty hardened steel made to be robust enough

To stand up to spinning at 1,700 rpm for hours at a time.

Each train is made up of thousands of components,

Which come together on the world's longest

Train production line.

It takes two years to engineer

And build a train from raw components to finished product.

In 2018, these factories produced $9 billion

Worth of trains for 280 different train operators.

Now, 120 miles from rome,

Dennis' train is running two minutes behind schedule...

...And the journey up ahead won't be easy.

The track across the apennine's foothills twists

And turns through extremely hilly terrain.

It's critical the train stays on the rails around every bend.

Leaving the track at high speed

Could have devastating consequences.

July 24, 2013.

This alvia train crashed as it entered a tight bend at more

Than twice the 50-mile-per-hour speed limit.

The derailment near santiago de compostela, Spain,

Reportedly killed 80 people and injured 144.

Investigators concluded the train's high speed

Caused the crash.

To prevent disasters like this from happening to italo's agv,

Engineers fit the train with an automatic speed limiter.

If a driver attempts to go over the limit,

The train self-regulates the brakes to slow the machine

Down to the correct speed.

Firmly attached to the rails,

The agv safely speeds through dozens of bridges and viaducts

That span across the apennine's mountainous terrain.

All cross-country trains travel on rails

Laid on top of railroad ties.

The ties are often embedded in a layer of rough stones

That run on top of an earth embankment.

Over time, small movements in the soil beds down the track.

But where the track crosses viaducts and bridges,

Its ties are fixed to immovable concrete structures.

Small bumps can form in the track at the transition points

Between soft embankment and rigid bridge.

They won't derail the train, but, at 223 miles per hour,

They can make passengers very uncomfortable.

♪

Italo's reputation depends on giving passengers a smooth ride

Through all stages of the journey.

To beat the bumps, engineers build a two-layer solution

Into the train's wheel bogies.

Detaching a bogie from its carriage

Reveals the secret to a smooth ride.

Layer one -- four 9.5-inch-long coiled springs

Made from high-density steel

And a set of hydraulic piston dampeners

Mounted on the bogie's side.

Layer two -- a pair of bags made from tough rubber

On either side of the bogie.

The agv's train carriages sit on top.

The layers work together to iron out jolts and shakes.

The coiled springs compress to absorb the impact

From the bogies' wheels hitting bumps in the track.

Pistons inside the hydraulic dampeners

Soak up jerky sideways movements

To keep the train's wheels on the rails.

The inflatable bags adjust the level of cushioning

Depending on the number of passengers onboard the agv.

Thanks to its ingenious suspension system,

Passengers on this train enjoy the most comfortable of rides.

The silky-smooth suspension allows dennis

To keep his train close to maximum speed.

And he's finally able to to recover from the time lost

At their first stop point.

But up ahead lies a challenge that, if not handled correctly,

Threatens to not only push the train behind schedule again

But harm its passengers.

What feats of engineering allow this supertrain

To blast through tunnels at 223 miles per hour,

And what keeps its wheels firmly on the slippery track?

Narrator: The groundbreaking italo agv

Is nearly halfway into its journey from milan to rome.

The train is right on schedule

As it speeds passengers into the apennine mountains.

Up front, driver dennis negotiates the train

Around tight bends at 223 miles per hour.

Traveling this fast leaves little time to react

If there's the need to make an emergency stop.

♪

To keep both the driver and passengers safe

In the event of a collision,

Engineers build in an innovative protection system.

The nose is this train's first line of defense.

Inside are three layers of protection --

A piston for absorbing extreme impacts at the front,

A steel plate with five crumple zones,

And a crash-proof driver's cage made from high-density steel.

Crash tests show the safety system

Absorbs the impact of a truck

Traveling at over 60 miles per hour,

Greatly increasing the driver's chances of surviving a crash.

♪

The italo agv train is now deep in the apennine mountains.

The fastest route through is via a series of nine tunnels,

Some up to 12 miles long.

Driving a train through a tunnel at high speed

Is a formidable engineering challenge.

Air inside a tunnel is trapped within a confined space.

When a train speeds into a tunnel at 223 miles per hour,

It compresses the air inside.

Like a piston, the front of the train

Pushes along a cushion of air.

As a result, the air pressure drops rapidly.

This sudden change of pressure could damage

The most pressure-sensitive part of the passengers' bodies --

Their eardrums, making their journey very painful.

♪

As the train nears the tunnel, dennis activates the flaps.

The train is now completely sealed.

It enters this 12-mile-long tunnel at 223 miles per hour.

Meanwhile, the passengers feel nothing.

♪

Outside the tunnel, dennis unseals the carriages.

Through the apennines, his train continues on.

♪

Within 10 minutes, he arrives at the next stop -- florence.

♪

This station is unique.

It requires dennis

To pull out of the station the same way he came in.

♪

To do this, he must switch to the driver cab

At the other end of the train.

This is a well-coordinated procedure.

It must be executed correctly in order for the train

To leave on time.

♪

With all passengers finally aboard,

Dennis kicks the train into gear

And accelerates out of florence station.

♪

The agv has just 90 minutes to reach rome.

Dennis must push the train to the max.

But the stresses and strains of the task

Increase the risk of mechanical failure.

What makes this supertrain strong enough to stand up

To these extreme circumstances,

And what stops its polished steel wheels

From spinning out of control?

♪

Narrator: The italo agv

Is 250 miles into its journey from milan to rome.

Italo's reputation with its passengers

Relies on the train arriving on time.

Driver dennis once again pushes the train up

To its top operational speed of 223 miles per hour.

So far, the train has traveled at top speed

For 50% of its journey.

The longer the train travels at its highest capacity,

The greater the stress on its components.

At the train's top speed,

The agv's wheels and axles turn at 1,700 rpm.

This huge stress, together with extreme heating

Caused by friction with the track,

Increases the risk they could shatter,

Potentially leading to disaster.

December 20, 1984 --

Fire erupts from a ventilation shaft

Connected to summit hill rail tunnel

In the united kingdom.

The cause of the blaze --

A freight train hauling 13 tankers

Carrying nearly 265,000 gallons of fuel.

A defective axle bearing on one of the tankers breaks.

It causes the train to come off the tracks

And all the tankers behind to derail.

The fuel ignites,

Causing one of the largest tunnel fires to date.

Luckily, no one is killed or seriously injured.

♪

To prevent this disaster from happening on the agv,

Engineers designed wheels

That can withstand extreme conditions.

Each of the train's 48 wheels

Is made from a single 2,645-pound piece of steel.

During forging, each wheel is quenched in liquid.

The exterior cools rapidly, creating a hard surface.

The core cools slowly, making it more flexible.

The wheel's soft interiors absorb extreme shocks

And stresses.

The hard exterior can pound the track

For over 650,000 miles.

The wheels and axles are tough,

But they can develop microscopic fractures

That weaken the metal to the point it breaks apart.

Regular checkups are critical to identify

Potentially dangerous defects before it's too late.

The cracks are too small to see with a human eye,

So engineers use ultrasonic testing

To look inside the metal.

The scanner sends a sound wave into this train axle.

The strength of the sound's reflection alerts engineers

If there's a dangerous defect hidden inside.

Super tough wheels give dennis the confidence

To push onto rome at top speed.

The italian capital is now less than 65 miles away,

And the clock is ticking.

Commuters onboard expect to reach their destination

In half an hour, but ahead lies a challenge

That threatens to push the train behind schedule --

Hazards on the line itself.

Mud, leaves, and other organic material on the metal tracks

Can make them slippery, causing the agv's wheels to lose grip.

♪

A lack of grip between the wheels and the track

Could cause the train to skid.

This could greatly affect the ability of the train

To stop in an emergency.

In the worst case, the skid could cause a train

To come off the rails.

♪

To beat the skid, engineers build four special boxes

Into the nose of the train.

Combined, they contain a total of 175 pounds of coarse sand.

A pipe connects the box to an outlet

Directly in front of the lead wheels.

At the press of a button,

The train's driver can release the sand onto the track.

When there's a need for speed, this simple system can make

All the difference in slippery conditions.

♪

Sensors mounted in the bogies

Monitor the rotation of the wheels on each axle.

If one axle spins faster than the others,

It means one of the wheels is slipping.

To prevent loss of traction,

The driver releases sand onto the track

To help give the wheels extra grip.

The sand has a lot more friction than the steel rails.

Although only a few millimeters deep, the sand layer

Breaks the erratic spin of the slipping wheel,

Bringing it back under control so that it regains traction.

After traveling nearly 375 miles,

Rome's central station is in sight.

Dennis' agv must arrive on time,

But one final obstacle could wreck his chances.

Ahead, the train's specialty built high-speed track

Crosses a network of suburban rail lines.

What technology stops this super-fast train

From getting stuck behind slow commuter services,

And will this train make it to rome on time?

♪

Narrator: Europe's ultimate passenger train, the italo agv,

Is now just 12 miles from its destination --

Rome's central station.

But crisscrossing commuter lines

Makes this the slowest section of the entire route.

Operations director sofia apadula monitors

The train's progress from italo's command center.

After speeding through Italy

At an average of 155 miles per hour,

Getting caught in this congestion

On the outskirts of rome will blow any chance the train

Has of reaching its destination on time.

Sofia and her colleagues use a system

Called communication-based train control to monitor

In real time the precise location of their trains

Throughout the country.

The system's primary purpose is to warn controllers

When two trains are on a collision course.

But when time-critical services must reach rome on schedule,

It's the perfect tool to clear the track of slower traffic.

(telephone rings)

With the track ahead clear,

Dennis speeds towards the terminal in rome.

Finally, after 3 hours and 30 minutes,

The train pulls into rome station right on schedule.

The italo agv's reputation for super speed

And punctuality remains intact.

Today, dennis' train accomplished its mission.

It's all thanks to five engineering marvels

Built into its sleek frame that help make it

One of the world's ultimate passenger trains.

Intelligent electric motors that maintain the train's speed

Up any incline,

Reactive pantographs

That safely channel 25,000 volts

From live overhead cables...

...Sophisticated multilayered suspension

Provides passengers with a smooth ride,

An ingenious pressure-sealing system

Protects passengers' ear drums,

And sand boxes that stop slipping wheels

And beat greasy rails.

This is a train that's fast and engineered

For both safety and passenger comfort.

The italo agv is one of the ultimate in its class.