Arriva Trains Wales sees fuel consumption fall as it completes DAS rollout

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Credit: Arriva Trains Wales.
Credit: Arriva Trains Wales.
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Arriva Trains Wales has fitted its entire train fleet with driver advisory systems (DAS), transforming them into “much greener machines”.

Since the rollout of DAS began in July 2015, 750,000 litres of fuel have been saved – enough to fly an Airbus A320 passenger airliner around the world at least three times, according to Arriva.

DAS helps drivers to reduce the amount of fuel they use on journeys by encouraging efficient driving practices. For example, it advises drivers when lower speeds or long periods of coasting can be applied based on real-time train timetable progress.


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It therefore helps to improve the operator’s performance, saves on wear and tear on the brakes and improves the passenger experience by providing better estimates for arrival times.

DAS is one element of a strategy which will deliver a 5 per cent reduction in Arriva’s carbon emissions by 2018, the company has said.

Arriva Trains Wales’ driver performance manager Gareth Morgan said that the company began to see a “dramatic reduction” in fuel consumption and carbon emissions after a couple of months.

He added: “Trains play a huge role in sustainable transport, and installing the system across our entire network fleet is an indication of our pledge to reduce the environmental impact of our operations.”

Two driver car trailers (DAS) are the only two vehicles of Arriva Trains Wales’ fleet not to be equipped.

Arriva, a subsidiary of Deutsche Bahn, has run the Wales and Borders franchise since 2003.


Read more: The Rail Engineer looks at Driver Advisory Systems


 

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