Prague Metro Sticks with L.B. Foster for Friction Solutions

Operators of the Prague Metro are big believers in the in-service benefits of our friction management solutions. That’s because they have seen first-hand a real reduction in hunting and corrugation problems, as well as reduced tread wear further extending wheel life.

The Prague Metro is the sixth busiest in Europe. It features 60km of track with 57 stations and serves around 620 million passengers a year. Metro M1 is a Czech type of metro train used on Line C of the Prague Metro. These Metro trains were made by ČKD, Siemens and ADTranz and were developed especially for Prague. Each train is a five car unit with powered bogies and equipped with:

> L.B. Foster’s LCF (Low Coefficient of Friction) Solid Stick on-board lubricant system on the wheel flange of three axles (our of 20 axles)

> L.B. Foster’s HPF (High Positive Friction) Solid Stick on-board friction modifier on the wheel tread on five axles (out of 20 axles).

Jifi Hofschnaidr, Project Manager Full Service Metro M1 for Siemens, says: “Due to tread wear, rail corrugation and vehicle ‘hunting’ on Line C of the Prague Metro, we introduced L.B. Foster’s HPF for test purposes in 2001, with fleet fit completed by mid 2002.

“The application of HPF has reduced hunting and corrugation problems. It has also reduced tread wear, further extending wheel life. Currently, wheel life on Line C trains is expected to last approximately 1.5m kilometres.

"The effectiveness of HPF was further underlined when we removed all HPF from the fleet for a six month period. During this time significant wear of the wheel tread took place.”

Prague Metro operates three lines - A,B and C. Our LCF sticks were introduced on Line B in 1996 and Lines A and C in 1997. According to Prague Metro and Siemens, wheel life has been extended on all lines following the application of LCF.

David Tichota is Project Manager Deputy Full Service Metro M1 at Siemens. He adds: “The in-service performance of L.B. Foster’s HPF solid stick solutions has demonstrated clear returns in terms of extended asset life performance and associated cost benefits. We recommend the use of HPF on other train fleets.”

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