(Sort of) G class operating preview

[TP]

The sort-of is the sound of Škoda motors which will be heard in Melbourne in the near future!

Here is a well-composed video taken inside the new 52T in Prague, showing it at work on the eastern part of Line 12.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EIyBSFbF-O8

Near the end of the video there is a detailed walk-through worth watching, showing the interior, but the video first starts at the back end where there is an additional nine seats in place of a second driver's cab. The 32 metre long 2.5 metre wide tram has 70 seats and 173 standing places, making a total capacity of 243.

It's very similar to the (full length) G2 class, except, as mentioned elsewhere, having the end swivelling bogies, positioned right at the end of the tram, rather than in the end saloon as in the G class. This is to minimise the amount of narrowed aisle resulting from bogie swing. All of the seats in the 52T are mounted on the flat floor, not on raised plinths.

The 52T is a Forcity Plus model, which first appeared in Bratislava in 2014. There is another example of the Forcity Plus, built for FCB (Frankfurt(Oder)/Cottbus/Brandenburg), which is very similar to the G1 class, having only three modules and the swivelling end bogies under the saloons like the G1. (Again that diabolical situation where trams with different mechanical platforms are classed together as the same model!) The FCB tram is 29 metres long, 156 passenger capacity including 61 seats. It is only 2.4 metres wide and narrow gauge.

The G1 class is 25.2 metres long and has a capacity of 150 (I don't know the number of seats). The G2 class is 35 metres long. Both are 2.65 metres wide. I would be interested to know the number of seats in each, including folding.

Tony P

[Matthew Geier]

On 26/6/25 14:57, 'TP' via TramsDownUnder wrote:
> It's very similar to the (full length) G2 class, except, as mentioned
> elsewhere, having the end swivelling bogies, positioned right at the
> end of the tram, rather than in the end saloon as in the G class. This
> is to minimise the amount of narrowed aisle resulting from bogie swing.

But the body will overhang more on curves. Presumably Prague has a more
generous track spacing than Melbourne.

[TP]

Yes, the kinematic envelope can determine the position of the bogies and, when they swing, the width of aisle, or indeed whether it is possible to have a trench aisle at all at the ends of the tram. Trams with swivelling bogies running on metre-gauge track do have an issue with having a low floor at the ends of the tram if the curve radius and clearance are too tight, so they have a high floor over the end bogies. Such is the case with the FCB trams. Conversely, the metre-gauge trams in Helsinki are presumably in a better situation and the Škoda trams there have a low floor from end to end.

Tony P

[TP]

Some more technical commentary on the 52T.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dJRxu2RHPyk

A currency conversion of the figures given in the commentary. Each tram costs $AUD 6 million. The whole order of 200 would be $AUD 1.1 billion. Getting expensive.

Tony P