TecnoTren
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TecnoTren is an
Argentine Argentines (mistakenly translated Argentineans in the past; in Spanish (masculine) or (feminine)) are people identified with the country of Argentina. This connection may be residential, legal, historical or cultural. For most Argentines, s ...
manufacturer of
railbus A railbus is a lightweight passenger railcar that shares many aspects of its construction with a bus, typically having a bus (original or modified) body and four wheels on a fixed base, instead of on bogies. Originally designed and developed d ...
es. Its products are designed to be very low cost vehicles intended for use in rural parts of the country where railway privatisation and the subsequent deterioration of
the network The Network was an American six-piece new wave band. they released their debut album ''Money Money 2020'' on Adeline Records on September 30, 2003. After a 15-year hiatus, the band became active again in 2020, releasing a follow-up album titl ...
left small rural villages isolated.


Overview

The TecnoTren units use readily available parts from the Argentine automotive industry, with the 1.7 litre engine being from a
Fiat Duna The Fiat Duna (Type 155) is a small car produced by Fiat in Argentina and Brazil, where it was sold as Fiat Prêmio. Launched in 1985 in Brazil, the Duna/Prêmio is based on the Brazilian Fiat Uno, but unlike the Uno, it was a two-door sedan. ...
, which doesn't necessarily have to be new. This makes them extremely economical both in price per unit and with regards to its fuel consumption, as well as maintenance costs.TecnoTren
/ref> As a result, the railbuses are ideal for low-traffic rural lines while being easily adapted to the country's three primary track gauges. The light weight of the units, as well as their low maximum speed, also mean that they can be used on tracks in very poor condition, making them well suited to parts of the country which have no current plans for track replacement under the recent modernisation efforts following renationalisation. The TecnoTren is available in 1, 2 and 3 carriage configurations, all of which have
disc brakes A disc brake is a type of brake that uses the calipers to squeeze pairs of pads against a disc or a "rotor" to create friction. This action slows the rotation of a shaft, such as a vehicle axle, either to reduce its rotational speed or to hol ...
, automatic gearboxes and a maximum range of 700 km. All components of the railbus are disc brakes made in Argentina, with the exception of the engine which is no longer in production.


History

TecnoTren was established by Jorge Beritich, a former car bodies manufacturer that conceived and built a vehicle to run on abandoned railway tracks. Beritich designed a prototype named "Microtren" in 2003 but it could not be tested until 2007 when the microtren made short trips in General Mansilla (renamed "Bartolomé Bavio" by its inhabitants), one of the stations of the line that joined La Plata with Las Pipinas in the south east of
Buenos Aires Province Buenos Aires (), officially the Buenos Aires Province (''Provincia de Buenos Aires'' ), is the largest and most populous Argentine province. It takes its name from the city of Buenos Aires, the capital of the country, which used to be part of th ...
. The line had been closed in 1978."El tren de los pueblos viene marchando" by Gustavo Moure
Rumbos Digital
Although Beritich died soon after the prototype was launched, the production of railbuses was continued by Tecnoporte, a factory in El Talar district of
Greater Buenos Aires Greater Buenos Aires ( es, Gran Buenos Aires, GBA), also known as the Buenos Aires Metropolitan Area ( es, Área Metropolitana de Buenos Aires, AMBA), refers to the urban agglomeration comprising the Autonomous City of Buenos Aires and the adjac ...
. The prototype was later modified and improved, resulting in current TecnoTren. TecnoTren made its official debut in the
Entre Ríos Province Entre Ríos (, "Between Rivers") is a central province of Argentina, located in the Mesopotamia region. It borders the provinces of Buenos Aires (south), Corrientes (north) and Santa Fe (west), and Uruguay in the east. Its capital is Paraná ( ...
, running on the line from Paraná to Colonia Avellaneda since 2010, being operated by the Unidad Ejecutora Ferroviaria de Entre Ríos (UEFER), a state-owned company of the province. The journey time took 40' with 25 stops along the way. In 2013, those services were transferred to national company
Trenes Argentinos Operadora Ferroviaria Sociedad del Estado (abbreviated SOFSE; trading name: Trenes Argentinos Operaciones) is an Argentine state-owned company created in 2008 to operate passenger services in Argentina. It is a subsidiary of the Ferrocarriles Ar ...
which runs the trains to the present day. In 2013, the TecnoTren railbuses inaugurated the 4,6 km-length
University train of La Plata The University train of La Plata is a commuter rail service part of Roca Line, currently being operated by State-owned company Trenes Argentinos. Trains run within La Plata city of Buenos Aires Province in Argentina. History The service wa ...
service running on Roca Railway tracks along the university campus, joining the La Plata terminus with the polyclinic. They are also used in some specialist cases, such as for transport at the Tecnopolis exposition ground.Cómo hacer del Tecno Tren un “Ferrobus” y de las vías un corredor para la integración…
- El Cronista, 24 November 2013.
It was also announced that TecnoTren is going to run in
Santiago del Estero Province Santiago del Estero (), also known simply as Santiago, is a province in the north of Argentina. Neighboring provinces, clockwise from the north, are Salta, Chaco, Santa Fe, Córdoba, Catamarca and Tucumán. History The indigenous inhabitant ...
under the name "Tren del Desarrollo" on Mitre Railway tracks. The service (meant for tourists) will cross the Puente Negro through Río Dulce.


See also

*
Santa Fe Urban Train The Santa Fe Urban Train (in Spanish: "Tren Urbano de Santa Fe") was a commuter rail serving the metropolitan area of Santa Fe city in Argentina. It had 8 stops, extending from El Molino to Don Bosco stations, running on the Belgrano Railway ' ...
*
Tren al Desarrollo Tren al Desarrollo (in English: "Train to Development") is an elevated commuter rail service between the cities of Santiago del Estero (from the "Forum" station) and La Banda (with also a new building) in Santiago del Estero Province. Trains r ...
*
University train of La Plata The University train of La Plata is a commuter rail service part of Roca Line, currently being operated by State-owned company Trenes Argentinos. Trains run within La Plata city of Buenos Aires Province in Argentina. History The service wa ...
*
Rail transport in Argentina The Argentine railway network consisted of a network at the end of the Second World War and was, in its time, one of the most extensive and prosperous in the world. However, with the increase in highway construction, there followed a sharp decl ...


References


External links

* {{Rolling stock manufacturers of Argentina Railway companies established in 2009 Rolling stock manufacturers of Argentina Argentine brands