The MF 88 is a steel-wheel variant of

electric multiple unit An electric multiple unit or EMU is a multiple-unit train consisting of self-propelled carriages using electricity as the motive power. An EMU requires no separate locomotive, as electric traction motors are incorporated within one or a numbe ...

s used on

Paris Paris () is the capital and most populous city of France, with an estimated population of 2,165,423 residents in 2019 in an area of more than 105 km² (41 sq mi), making it the 30th most densely populated city in the world in 2020. S ...

's Métro system. RATP contracted a consortium of manufacturers, with

Ateliers du Nord de la France Alstom Crespin, formerly Bombardier Transport France and ANF Industrie, is a French rolling stock manufacturer based at Crespin, in Hauts-de-France region, France. The company was acquired by Bombardier Transportation in 1989, then by Alstom in 20 ...

(now

Bombardier Transportation Bombardier Transportation was a Canadian-German rolling stock and rail transport manufacturer, headquartered in Berlin, Germany. It was one of the world's largest companies in the rail vehicle and equipment manufacturing and servicing industry ...

) in charge of the project. They were built following successful tests of a

prototype A prototype is an early sample, model, or release of a product built to test a concept or process. It is a term used in a variety of contexts, including semantics, design, electronics, and Software prototyping, software programming. A prototyp ...

train-set called the "

BOA Kwon Bo-ah (; born November 5, 1986), known professionally as BoA, is a South Korean singer, songwriter, dancer, record producer and actress. One of the most successful and influential Korean entertainers, she has been dubbed the " Queen of K- ...

", derived from the

MF 77 The MF 77 (abbreviated from the French: ''Metro Fer appel d'offre 1977'') is a steel-wheeled variant of the rolling stock used on the Paris Métro. First used in 1978, it now runs on Lines 7, 8, and 13. Unlike previous models, the MF 77 was ...

, which tested new features such as interconnecting passages between cars to improve passenger distribution and special

bogie A bogie ( ) (in some senses called a truck in North American English) is a chassis or framework that carries a wheelset, attached to a vehicle—a modular subassembly of wheels and axles. Bogies take various forms in various modes of transp ...

s to reduce

friction Friction is the force resisting the relative motion of solid surfaces, fluid layers, and material elements sliding against each other. There are several types of friction: *Dry friction is a force that opposes the relative lateral motion of t ...

caused by the sharp curves found in the Métro network. Carrying on the features of the BOA, a total of nine MF 88 train-sets were built, which currently operate on Line 7bis in a three-car formation. The high rate of wear-and-tear of the train-sets has made maintenance much more expensive than expected. This is because of the design flaw in the

chassis A chassis (, ; plural ''chassis'' from French châssis ) is the load-bearing framework of an artificial object, which structurally supports the object in its construction and function. An example of a chassis is a vehicle frame, the underpart ...

, it has one

axle An axle or axletree is a central shaft for a rotating wheel or gear. On wheeled vehicles, the axle may be fixed to the wheels, rotating with them, or fixed to the vehicle, with the wheels rotating around the axle. In the former case, bearing ...

which is very unusual. It was speculated that they were likely to be replaced by spare

MF 67 The MF 67 is a fleet of steel-wheel electric multiple unit trains for the Paris Métro. The first MF 67 trains entered service on Line 3 in June 1968, and became one of the biggest orders for the Métro, with 1,482 cars constructed. The ne ...

s, which in turn were replaced by the

MF 2000 The MF 2000 (officially called the MF 01) is a model of steel-wheeled electrical multiple units used on Paris's Metro system. The cars first arrived in December 2007 and delivery was completed in 2015. RATP ordered 160 trains or 800 cars in 20 ...

. However, this plan has been abandoned and it is unclear if the trains will be considered for a mid-life refurbishment (''from :fr:MF 88'').

Technical specifications

* Manufacturers:

Alstom Alstom SA is a French multinational rolling stock manufacturer operating worldwide in rail transport markets, active in the fields of passenger transportation, signalling, and locomotives, with products including the AGV, TGV, Eurostar, Avelia ...

, Faiveley,

Renault Groupe Renault ( , , , also known as the Renault Group in English; legally Renault S.A.) is a French multinational automobile manufacturer established in 1899. The company produces a range of cars and vans, and in the past has manufactured ...

ANF ANF may refer to: Companies * ANF (real estate), a French property-management company * ANF Les Mureaux, a French aircraft manufacturer 1918–1937 * Ateliers du Nord de la France, a French locomotive manufacturer * Abercrombie & Fitch (NYSE symbo ...

* Electric source: 750 V DC

third rail A third rail, also known as a live rail, electric rail or conductor rail, is a method of providing electric power to a railway locomotive or train, through a semi-continuous rigid conductor placed alongside or between the rails of a railway t ...

* Traction: GTO (Gate Turn Off) * Power: 2

motors An engine or motor is a machine designed to convert one or more forms of energy into mechanical energy. Available energy sources include potential energy (e.g. energy of the Earth's gravitational field as exploited in hydroelectric power gen ...

per motor coach of , per train * Maximum speed: * Bogies: Bi-Directional * Length: * Train-set: M-B-M

Formations

In date of 01September 2022: 8 Mf88 trainsets were in service and were formed as shown below, One trainset was scrapped in 2013 As of 1 March 2022, 8 trainsets were allocated to Pré St gervais Depot (Paris) for use on Line 7Bis, in a 3-car formation (2M1T). MF 1988 {{Paris-metro-stub Paris Métro line 7bis 750 V DC multiple units Alstom multiple units Electric multiple units of France