Tokyo trains to run on fuel cells

Japan's biggest rail company will soon test what it says will be the world's first train to use fuel cells, following the lead of the country's carmakers in rolling out cleaner and more efficient transport.

Pollution-free fuel cells generate electricity through a chemical reaction between hydrogen and oxygen, producing only water vapour as exhaust.

East Japan Railways, which serves the congested Tokyo area and carries 16 million passengers a day, will test the New Energy Train in July with the aim of operating it on regular tracks by the middle of next year.

The initial NE Train will be a single unit powered by electric batteries and capable of travelling at 100km/h. It is essentially a hybrid vehicle, with a diesel-run generator providing most of the electricity. Two 65kW hydrogen fuel cells will provide about a third of the power. It should be quieter than conventional trains.

"It's the first time this technology has been used in railway cars," said company spokesman Akira Mori.

"But it's still too soon to talk about when it will start carrying paying passengers."

JR East, as the company is also known, estimates that the NE Train will use 20 per cent less energy than traditional trains.

The company has cut overall energy consumption by 13 per cent since 1990, despite rising traffic volumes.

The NE Train's fuel efficiency will be helped by batteries that recharge every time the train brakes.

Similar technology has scored a big hit for Japanese carmakers, which are catering to surging global interest in hybrids.

The NE Train will be particularly useful in outlying areas where there are no overhead power lines.

But as with cars, hydrogen-powered trains will need more fuelling stations to make long-distance travel practical. And producing hydrogen is still costly and not always energy-efficient.

- REUTERS