BLS RABe 515

The BLS RABe 515, also known as MUTZ,^[a] is a class of bilevel electric multiple units manufactured by Stadler Rail for BLS AG. It is a second-generation derivative of the Stadler KISS. Formations are composed of four or six cars. They were the first bilevel cars used by BLS.

BLS RABe 515
Four-car formation near Bürglen in 2012
Second class interior, upper level
In service	2012–present
Manufacturer	Stadler Rail
Family name	Stadler KISS
Number built	39
Number in service	39
Formation	4–6 cars
Fleet numbers	001–039
Capacity	335–546
Operators	BLS AG BLS Fernverkehr AG
Specifications
Train length	102.6–151.88 m (336.6–498.3 ft)
Weight	216–310 t (213–305 long tons; 238–342 short tons)
Power output	4,000 kW (5,400 hp)
Electric system(s)	15 kV  16.7 Hz AC

History

BLS ordered 28 four-car trainsets in March 2010 at a cost of CHF 494 million. BLS planned to use the cars on various Bern S-Bahn routes.^[2] The first trains entered service on 19 September 2012.^[3] All 28 trains were in service by the December 2014 timetable change.^[4] BLS ordered three more trainsets in 2015, also for use on S-Bahn routes.^[5] In 2018, BLS exercised an option for eight more trainsets for use on long-distance routes between Bern and Biel/Bienne and Bern and Olten. Five of these use an extended six-car formation.^[6]

Design

The four-car formation is 102,240 millimetres (335 ft 5+3⁄16 in) long. Cars stand 4,595 millimetres (15 ft 7⁄8 in) tall and are 2,800 millimetres (9 ft 2+1⁄4 in) wide. The four-car trains have seating for 335 passengers; the six-car trains can accommodate 546. The design speed is 160 kilometres per hour (99 mph).^[7][8]

In both formations there are cabs at the front and rear ends. The four-car formation has a single car with split first class and second class seating, with the six-car formation has two such cars. Passengers sit on both levels of the cars. The cars are low floor. Stairs at each end of each car permit access to the gangway between cars and to the upper level.^[9][10]

Operation

As of 2022^[update], the BLS RABe 515 is used on the S1, S3, S31, and S6 of the Bern S-Bahn, and on the Bern–Biel/Bienne and Bern–Olten InterRegio services.^[1]

Naming

RABe 515 009 is named after 'Muri bei Bern'

It is common practice for railway companies in Switzerland to name their locomotives (e.g. SBB Re 620, BLS Re 465) and MUs (e.g. SBB RABe 501, SOB RABe 526, BLS RABe 525, BLS RABe 528). Twelve BLS RABe 515 are named after communes in the cantons of Bern, Fribourg, Neuchâtel and Solothurn, each displaying also the respective coat of arms (COA). RABe 515 008 has a special livery.^[11]

№	COA	Name		№	COA	Name		№	COA	Name
515 001		Stadt Bern		515 009		Muri bei Bern		515 018		Stadt Langenthal
515 003		Düdingen		515 012		Lyss		515 020		Schwarzenburg
515 004		Ville de Neuchâtel		515 013		Fribourg/Freiburg		515 035		Olten
515 006		Köniz		515 014		Interlaken		515 036		Biel/Bienne

Notes

1. German: moderner, universeller triebzug, lit. 'modern, universal multiple unit train'^[1]