French railway operator SNCF orders hundreds of new trains that are too big

theguardian.com ^ | Wednesday 21 May 2014 07.03 EDT | Kim Willsher in Paris

[DeaconBenjamin]

France's national railway operator SNCF has ordered 2,000 new trains that are too large for many of the stations they are due to serve.

The train operator has admitted failing to verify measurements it was given by the rail operator before ordering its new rolling stock.

The costly mistake has sparked an urgent €50m operation to modify 1,300 platforms on the regional network. SNCF has admitted that one in six regional train stations is affected. In the worst cases it has discovered two trains can no longer pass each other on adjacent lines.

The French minister of transport described the situation as absurd and a "comic drama". The rail farce was revealed in Le Canard Enchaîné, which said: "The clever engineers at SNCF forgot to verify the facts on the ground."

SNCF and RFF said in a joint statement on Wednesday: "Putting this network of new generation and larger trains in order to satisfy public demand will require the modernisation of 1,300 platforms out of the 8,700 in the French rail network."

The economic newspaper Les Echos said: "It could have been an arithmetic exercise from the old days."

[Blood of Tyrants]

You would think that the width of the train would be a primary and critical dimension worthy of scrutiny BEFORE your spec’d and bought them.

[Celtic Conservative]

quelle suprise!

Le locomotive du francais ce’ tres’ gros!

CC

[Organic Panic]

Don’t worry. The government will fix it.

[Arrowhead1952]

Willie Green is deeply saddened.

[SMARTY]

So the news here is, the US does NOT have the market cornered on ‘stupid’?

Sorry...if it’s a competition... I think the “O” administration still holds all records.

[US_MilitaryRules]

Just tell all the passengers to lean to the outside as they pass the other rail car! /s

[mountainlion]

Did Obama have a hand in this?

[dfwgator]

Sacrebleu!

[Yo-Yo]

Well then unorder them and order the correct ones.

[George from New England]

But the new trains make it to Mars without a single incident. Or will they?

[Balding_Eagle]

Good one. I was hoping that someone would remember.

[Don Corleone]

Ain’t governments grand??

[wally_bert]

Try Orren Boyle’s french train engine division.

[Oatka]

It happens to the best of us. Years ago a small manufacturing company I worked for was looking to install an Automatic Storage and Retrieval Unit.

The sales rep told us how they installed one at a BIG building warehousing Cadillacs, and invited all the bigwigs to watch it's operation of inserting autos in all those niches.

As the operation smoothly ran on, they kept hearing "plink, plink" and getting nervous, stopped the operation after about a dozen cars were loaded and went down the aisle.

They were ankle-deep in side mirrors. In an effort to cram in as many cars as they could, some eager beaver measured only the width of the car and forgot to allow the few extra inches for the mirrors. (I suspect those guys were soon asking if you wanted fries with that order. If they were in government however, they'd be promoted.)

[ridesthemiles]

Just think what can happen with California’s high speed rail system!!!

[ridesthemiles]

Genius’s who studied the “New Math”???

[Corey Ohlis]

So is Andre Chapelon.