Where are the Alstom DART Units?

[Thomas Ralph]

I am of the understanding they are set to be scrapped, which is good riddance. Although the fact that IÉ got only 9 years out of them is scandalous.

[Mark Gleeson]

One set 8204-8404 has been gutted for parts. Its at least March 2006 since it last carried a passenger

Shock horror but a solution would be to strip the units out and refit them with the same traction equipment as the refurbished DART coaches. That ain't going to happen so a sledgehammer is the next best thing for them

[paddyb180285]

Originally Posted by Thomas Ralph

I am of the understanding they are set to be scrapped, which is good riddance. Although the fact that IÉ got only 9 years out of them is scandalous.

How come they are being scrapped? They were still in very good condition. They just needed new seats. That's it. Other than that, it is a complete waste.

[Mark Gleeson]

Originally Posted by paddyb180285

How come they are being scrapped? They were still in very good condition. They just needed new seats. That's it. Other than that, it is a complete waste.

Scrapping is still speculation, however with several coaches out of service for many years and serious technical and reliability problems and large scale orders for new DART coaches in the pipeline its going to be curtains

[shweeney]

shockingly poor return on the investment if this is true - do IE not have any comeback against Alstom?

btw - I don't think the seats are that bad, they're much better than the seats in the first batch of Japanese DARTs

[paddyb180285]

Originally Posted by shweeney

shockingly poor return on the investment if this is true - do IE not have any comeback against Alstom?

btw - I don't think the seats are that bad, they're much better than the seats in the first batch of Japanese DARTs

Your joking! The seats on the Japanese DART's are far more comfortable than the Alstom coaches as they aren't as constrictive. As well as that, they have head rests on them which makes the journey somewhat more relaxing. Oddly enough, the design of the Alstom DART coaches is loosely based on that of the DMU 2700 Commuter fleet which were also designed by Alstom. This is because the the door closing mechanism is the same and also the interior frame is almost identical. However, unlike their electric cousins, their seats look far more comfortable and above all have head rests. Why couldn't Alstom have used a green version of these seats. Instead, Alstom went along with similar seats to the ones they used on the Luas which are equally as uncomfortable.

[Mark Gleeson]

Well the Alstom units have a specific job title!

They form the 10 coach "Standby Wheelchair Accessible Fleet"

Given they haven't be in service in a year, and even then limited service, you will be hard pushed to find a DART driver who is actually still qualified to drive them, so they ain't much good