Ontario, Canada and Bombardier Transportation are in talks to develop a hydrogen train up in the Great White North. In three years time, when the prototype hydrogen train is completed it is expected to run on the Toronto GO Transit system.
Premier Dalton McGuinty made the announcement about the fuel cell train a couple of days ago at Bombardier’s Thunder Bay conventional locomotive-building plant. McGuinty has hinted that by going with hydrogen, many manufacturing jobs will be created in the future.
But, Canada is not the first country to toot their horns about hydrogen trains. The first hydrogen-powered mining train was built by Vehicle Projects in Golden, Colorado. Two Japanese entities, JR East and Tokyo’s RTRI are both in the final stages of developing hydrogen passenger trains.
Denmark is making headway in developing Europe’s first fuel cell locomotive. And, North Carolina is planning to convert a 30-mile stretch of tracks to a new hydrail system by 2009.
It’s good to see Canada jumping aboard the fuel cell locomotive train-of-thought. Who knows, may one day, people will be taking a trip to Niagara Falls aboard a hydrogen train. Wouldn’t that be grand?