Travelling by train in Canada and Italy is about to get more sustainable

Travellers heading to Canada and Italy might step foot on trains powered by hydrogen, electric and battery fuel sources. Photo / Alstom

International rail travel might look a little different for travellers to the northern hemisphere this year, as experimental options grace the tracks in Canada and Europe, in moves towards more sustainable transportation.

In Canada, a hydrogen-powered train is currently running commercial services through the countryside, in a North American first. The two-and-a-half-hour trip aboard the Coradia iLint train takes passengers from Quebec City to Baie-Saint-Paul, where tourists can find a range of art galleries, shopping and restaurants.

Alstom, the manufacturing company, claims, “The train is powered by a hydrogen fuel cell that emits only water vapour during operation, while ensuring a quieter environment for passengers and those close to tracks.”

The maximum speed of the vehicle is 140km/h and the train has two carriages – 100 people rode the train for its first North American trip in June.

The train, which will operate temporarily throughout the summer on the Réseau de Charlevoix railway network, is part of a demonstration project to highlight the use of hydrogen fuel cells in rail transportation (as an alternative to other fuels, such as diesel).

The company has partnered with the Canadian-based Harnois Énergies, which produces and distributes the hydrogen at a Quebec City station, utilising electricity that CBC News reports is hydro- and wind-generated and almost fully decarbonised.

The fuel is then transported to a train station via a diesel-powered truck – CBC reports a comment from Harnois saying the fuel would ideally be produced on-site.

Next year, the train will travel to another North American location, in the effort to promote future use of hydrogen-based fuel methods.

These hybrid trains from Hitachi are running throughout Italy, as the first phase of a national roll-out is completed. Photo / Hitachi Rail

Visitors to Italy might also experience some changes, as a fleet of 20 hybrid trains has also begun running in Calabria and Sicily. This move comes as a more permanent adaptation, as the national rail operator Trenitalia seeks to introduce a fleet of more sustainable vehicles.

CNN Travel reports that the trains have three- and four-carriages and seat 300 people and run on battery, electric and diesel power. Each train is made with 93 per cent recyclable materials.

This deployment was the first part of a roll-out that will eventually see 135 trains running across Sicily, Calabria, Tuscany, Lazio and Friuli Venezia Giulia. The batteries allow the trains to travel across non-electrified portions of the track, reducing emissions and noise pollution.

Hatchi Rail claims that the trains offer more sustainable rail travel and reduce carbon emission and fuel consumption by 50 per cent when compared to standard diesel trains.

These adaptations to rail travel see companies and transport systems experimenting with alternative energy sources, as they attempt to decarbonise passenger travel along national train lines. Some travellers visiting Quebec, Calabria and Sicily will find themselves as a part of their experimentation this summer.