German Water Trains

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For more delicious news, go to www.GoodNewsGoodPlanet.com, and scroll to bottom for more ways to find the feel good stuff!* GERMAN WATER TRAINS While public transportation is an essential part of a cleaner world, when it comes to trains, most of them run on diesel which emit greenhouse gases and carbon dioxide. But nowthere is an amazing eco-alternative. So all aboard… Germany is one of the first countries working towards eliminating emissions completely from their rail service, as they’ve recently introduced the world’s first zero emission, hydrogen powered passenger train. In 2017, 14 trains called the Coradia iLint were purchased by Germany from the company Alstom. It is expected that 14 more zero-emissions trains will be in service by 2021. France is anticipating having its first zero-emission train by 2022. The new hydrogen powered railcars are equipped with fuel cells, which produce electricity through a combination of hydrogen and oxygen. Where traditionally trains would emit pollution due to being diesel powered, hydrogen trains only emit harmless steam and water—any excess energy not used is stored in ion-lithium batteries on board the train for future consumption. The bright blue Coradia iLint trains can run on an electrified railway, for about 600 miles on one tank of hydrogen, which is comparable to the diesel version. This technology is not only greener, but a much quieter alternative. The hydrogen train is slightly more costly up front than the diesel version, but in the long run operations are less expensive. Hydrogen is the lightest element on the periodic table and it is also the most abundant chemical in the universe. These trains are a good option for nations that have limited petroleum reserves—as well as for the U.S. which already produces a large amount of Hydrogen annually. The hydrogen powered train is high performing, smart alternative to traditional rail travel and the first of its kind to be sustainable too. #### *Hungry for more of the Good Stuff? Search "Good News Good Planet" on YouTube, Instagram, Patreon, Alexa and wherever you listen to your favorite podcasts.