Estimated Weight Increase Resulting From Modifying European Trains to Meet Federal Railroad Administration Safety Rules

It is claimed by the European train manufacturers that adapting existing European high-speed train technologies to satisfy the Safety Rules of the Federal Railroad Administration (FRA) for rail passenger vehicles to be operated in the USA would result in a significant and uneconomic weight increase. A methodology was required for the estimation of this weight increase so that performance calculations can be undertaken of European high-speed train technologies that have been modified to suit the FRA Safety Rules.