Scottish Train Project Working to Decarbonize Transport Sector

Article written by Kerry Taylor-Smith

An innovative project to repurpose older model trains to run on clean hydrogen fuel could help decarbonise passenger rail transport and ensure governments achieve ambitious net-zero carbon targets.

The Hydrogen Accelerator project, led by the University of St Andrews, has demonstrated that existing stock can be repurposed by converting a 40-year-old three-car Class 314 train to a hydrogen fuel cell electric power train. The train has been re-tractioned and reclassified as a Class 614 hydrogen-powered train.

The project was successful in its most recent phase of testing, which took place at the Scottish Rail Preservation Society in Bo’ness. The green hydrogen to fuel the train is produced by an on-site electrolyser connected to the temporary refueller and played a key role in the demonstration.