SL X60 - Safety and Comfort

Safety and Comfort

Each car is 107 meters (351 feet) long and consists of six articulated portions. Each car can seat 374 and take 530 standees. Two such cars coupled together make up a full-length train. It is easy to go through the entire car to find an empty seat, or to move if one part of the car is crowded, and the design also provides visibility through the length of the car, which SL's passenger surveys found was important in order to help passengers feel safe. SL has also specified lower backrests in the X60 to improve visibility all the way through the car.

Boarding and alighting from the new train is intended to be much easier than doing so on the older commuter train stock. At each door, and in 92% of each car, the floor is at the same level as the station platforms. This means a significant quality improvement for all passengers but particularly for the mobility-impaired.

The actual technical parameters include 92% of the total floor space of each car having a floor height of 760 millimetres (30 in) rising to 830 millimetres (33 in) at the gangways, and a maximum floorheight anywhere in the wagons of 1,080 mm (43 in). The trains can travel at speeds of up to 160 km/h (99 mph) although they are only actually used at speeds of up to 140 km/h (87 mph) in Stockholm - a speed of 80 km/h (50 mph) is reached within 20 seconds. The trains have a width of 3.258 metres (130 in) and a height of 4.280 metres (170 in) above TOR, and a full length of 107.1 metres (350 ft).

The train is built in accord with the nominal platform height specified in the Swedish Railway Administration's standards. The Administration has begun a project to correct the heights of non-conforming platforms, but even before all the platforms have been fixed, passengers will notice a significant improvement in the form of a much lower floor height compared to the current stock, making boarding and alighting much easier than before.

In each car there are "flexible areas" that have room for wheelchairs, baby carriages and bicycles.

Another new feature is that the trains are equipped with air conditioning in both the passenger and cab areas. The seats have been designed in collaboration with leading ergonomists and representatives for SL passengers.

All cars have security cameras installed, just like the new Stockholm metro cars; this can contribute to increased security. Naturally, other safety details have also been carefully worked out, not least fire safety, with the use of non-inflammable and self-extinguishing materials.