Talgo - Design

Design

Talgo trains are best known for their unconventional articulated railway passenger car design in which the wheels are mounted in pairs but not joined by an axle, and are between rather than underneath the individual coaches, a system that was patented in 1941. This allows the train to be lower and lighter. The lower centre of gravity allows the train to take curves safely at a higher speed. As the coaches are not mounted directly onto wheel boggies, the coaches are more easily insulated from track noise and vibration and coach structural engineering is simpler and easier to maintain. Variations of this design are now used in other makes of train, such as in the French TGV. Talgo trains fitted with variable gauge axles can change rail gauge - for instance at the Spanish (1668 millimeters)/French (1435 millimeters) border interchange.

Since the introduction of the Talgo Pendular in 1980, the train tilts naturally inwards on curves. The system allows the train to run faster on curves without causing discomfort to passengers. The carriage tilting system pivots around the top of the suspension columns, which has the effect of partially cancelling out the effects of the lateral acceleration when cornering.