Intercity-Express

The Intercity-Express (written as InterCityExpress in Austria, Denmark, Switzerland and,

formerly, in Germany) or ICE (German pronunciation: [itsee]) is a system of high-speed
trains predominantly running in Germany and its surrounding countries. It is the highest
service category offered by DB Fernverkehr and is the flagship of Deutsche Bahn. The brand
name "ICE" is among the best-known in Germany, with a brand awareness close to 100%,
according to DB.[1] There are currently 259 trainsets in five different versions of the ICE
vehicles in use, named ICE 1 (deployed in 1991), ICE 2 (1996), ICE T (1999), ICE 3 (1999) and ICE
TD (20012003, back in service 2007). The ICE 3, including its variant models, is made by a
consortium led by Bombardier and Siemens.

Procurement of a further version,

ICx, began c. 2008, and was
rebranded ICE 4 in late 2015.
Introduction of the trains are
expected from 2016.

Apart from domestic use, the trains

can also be seen in countries
neighbouring Germany. There are,
for example, ICE 1 lines to Basel and
Zurich. ICE 3 trains also run to Lige
and Brussels[2] and at lower speeds
to Amsterdam.[3] On 10 June 2007,
a new line between Paris and
Frankfurt/Stuttgart was opened,
jointly operated by ICE and TGV
trains. ICE trains to London via the
Channel Tunnel are planned for
2018.[4][5] While ICE 3M trains
operate the Paris-Frankfurt service
(with the exception of trains
9553/9552, which operate with TGV
Duplex equipment and are cross-
crewed with both SNCF and DB
staff), SNCF's TGV runs from Paris to
Munich (via Stuttgart), with mixed crews on both trains.[6][7] German and Austrian ICE T trains
run to Vienna. On 9 December 2007, the ICE TD was introduced on the service from Berlin via
Hamburg to the Danish cities of Aarhus and Copenhagen.

The Spanish railway operator RENFE also employs trains based on the ICE 3 (Siemens Velaro)
called AVE Class 103 which are certified to run at speeds up to 350 km/h.[8] Wider versions
were ordered by China for the BeijingTianjin Intercity Railway link (CRH 3) and by Russia for
the Moscow Saint Petersburg and Moscow Nizhny Novgorod routes (Velaro RUS).

Eschede disaster
Eschede site Remains of ICE 884 "Wilhelm Conrad Rntgen"

The ICE accident near Eschede that happened on 3 June 1998 was a severe railway accident.
Trainset 51, travelling as ICE 884 "Wilhelm Conrad Rntgen" from Munich to Hamburg,
derailed at 200 km/h (125 mph), killing 101 and injuring 88. It remains the world's worst high-
speed rail disaster.

The cause of the accident was a wheel rim which broke and damaged the train six kilometres
south of the accident site. The wheel rim penetrated the carriage floor and lifted the check rail
of a set of points close to Eschede station. The broken-off check rail then forced the point
blades of the following set of points to change direction, and the rear cars of the trainset were
diverted to a different track. They hit the pillars of a street overpass, which then collapsed
onto the tracks. Only three cars and the front powerhead passed under the bridge, the rest of
the 14-car train jackknifed into the collapsed bridge.

Other accidents
On 27 September 2001, trainset 5509 fell off a work platform at the Hof maintenance facility
and was written off.
On 22 November 2001, powerhead 401 020 caught fire. The train was stopped at the
station in Offenbach am Main near Frankfurt a.M. No passengers were harmed, but the fire
caused the powerhead to be written off.
On 6 January 2004, ICE TD trainset 1106 caught fire while it was parked at Leipzig. Two
cars were written off, and the others are now used as spares.
On 1 April 2004, trainset 321 collided with a tractor that had fallen onto the track at a tunnel
entrance near Istein, and was derailed. No-one was injured. Trainset 321 was temporarily
taken apart, its cars being switched with cars from other ICE 3 trainsets.
Powerhead 401 553 suffered major damage in a collision with a car on the Mannheim
Frankfurt railway in April 2006.
On 28 April 2006, trainset 73 collided head-on with two BLS Re 465 locomotives at Thun in
Switzerland. The driver of the Swiss locomotives was unfamiliar with the new layout of the
station, which had been recently changed. He did not see a shunting signal ordering him to
stop. The locomotives automatically engaged the emergency brakes when he passed the
signal, but came to a stop on the same track as the approaching ICE. The ICE was
travelling at a speed of 74 km/h. The emergency brake slowed the train to 56 km/h at the
point of collision. 30 passengers and the driver of the ICE suffered minor injuries, the driver
of the Swiss locomotives having jumped to safety. Both trains suffered major damage. The
powerhead 401 573 had to be rebuilt using components from three damaged powerheads
(401 573, 401 020 and 401 551).
On 1 March 2008, trainset 1192, travelling as ICE 23, collided with a tree which had fallen
onto the track near Brhl after being blown down by Cyclone Emma. The driver suffered
severe injuries. The trainset is back in service, its driving-car having been replaced with
that from trainset 1106.
On 26 April 2008, trainset 11, travelling as ICE 885, collided with a herd of sheep on
the Hanover-Wrzburg high-speed rail line near Fulda. Both powerheads and ten of the 12
cars derailed. The train came to a stop 1300 metres into the Landrckentunnel. 19 of the
130 passengers suffered mostly minor injuries, four of them needing hospital treatment.[20]
A cracked axle was blamed for a low-speed derailment of a third-generation ICE in Cologne
in July 2008. The accident, in which no-one was hurt, caused DB to recall its newest ICEs
as a safety measure.[21] In October 2008, the company recalled its ICE-T trains after a
further crack was found.[22]
On 17 April 2010, ICE 105 Amsterdam - Basel lost a door while travelling at high speed
near Montabaur. The door slammed into the side of ICE 612 on the adjacent track. Six
people travelling on ICE 612 were injured.[23]
On 17 August 2010, the ICE from Frankfurt to Paris hit a truck that had slid from an
embankment on to the rail near Lambrecht. The first two carriages derailed and ten people
were injured, one seriously.[24]
On 11 January 2011, trainset 4654 partly derailed during a side-on collision with a freight
train near Zevenaar in the Netherlands.[25] There were no injuries