Rolling stock • Block train • High speed train • Talgo • Avril trainset
Summary: The Talgo Avril is a high-speed trainset developed by the Spanish manufacturer Talgo. Designed for speeds up to 380 km/h, it represents the latest in lightweight, articulated train technology. The Avril features a wide-bodied design allowing for greater passenger capacity—up to 581 seats in standard configuration. Notably, it supports multiple track gauges and power systems, enabling cross-border operations across Europe. Renfe began deploying its Avril Series 106 trains in May 2024 after over 300,000 km of testing, and many difficulties at the begining of service. By April 2024, ten units had been delivered, with 29 of the 30 expected by the end of 2024. However, the train is not yet certified in France. Despite successful tests at speeds up to 360 km/h, French approval is still pending and may be delayed until 2029, according to some sources.
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In brief
AVRIL, an acronym for “Alta Velocidad Rueda Independiente Ligero” (“Lightweight High-Speed Independent Wheel”), is a family of highly versatile and very high-speed trains developed by the Spanish railway company Talgo. These trains have been sold to Renfe Viajeros in two similar series: the Series 106 and the Series 107.
In 2015, Spain’s Ministry of Public Works launched a tender for 15 high-speed trains with 30 years of maintenance. Talgo won the contract in 2016, developing what became the Series 106, later expanded to 30 trainsets. Following delays, the first commercial service began on May 21, 2024.
The Series 106 is based on the G3 prototype but features redesigned power cars. It includes two subseries: the first 15 units (106.001–106.015) are fixed-gauge, while the other 15 (106.051–106.065) are gauge-changeable, suitable for both Iberian and standard gauges.
Passenger cars are fully newly built and vary in capacity: 507 seats in Renfe AVE and 581 seats in Renfe Avlo low-cost versions. In contrast, Series 107 reuses passenger cars from Talgo VII and adds new power cars.
A specialized version, nicknamed “Doctor Avril”, was delivered to Adif in 2019 as a track inspection train.
In January 2023, French operator Le Train signed a preliminary agreement for 10 Talgo Avril trainsets, valued at €300 million.
| TRAIN TYPE | ||
|---|---|---|
| Family name: | AVRIL | |
| Manufacturer: | Talgo | |
| Class: | Renfe: S-106 Renfe: S-107 (only AVRIL power cars) Le Train: unknow |
|
| Train type: | Trainset | |
| Sector: | Passenger main line | |
| Operator(s): | Renfe Viajeros (30), Le Train (10) | |
| First service: | 21 May 2024 | |
| TECHNICAL | ||
| Lenght: | up to 201,8m | |
| Maximum speed: | 330 km/h | |
| Traction system: | Renfe: 8 TSA asynchronous motors, 1,020 kW each, TMF 70-25-4 | |
| Electric system(s): | 25 kV 50 Hz AC, 3,000 V DC, 1,500 V DC | |
| Pantograph: | 1 per power car | |
| Braking system(s): | ||
| Track gauge: | 1,435 mm, 1,520mm, 1,668mm | |
| TRAIN CONFIGURATION | ||
| Formation: | Renfe: 2 power cars + 13 cars | |
| Seats First: | to be determined | |
| Seats Standard: | to be determined | |
| Restaurant car: | no | |
| Bar car: | yes | |
| Total seats: | Renfe: AVE 507 Renfe: Avlo 581 |
Technological highlights include wide car bodies (3,200 mm), independent wheelsets, active and passive guidance systems, automatic gauge changing, active suspension, and Talgo’s REGATO energy-efficient automatic driving system. The trains are extremely lightweight, enabling fast acceleration and lower energy use.
The G3 prototype was certified in 2016, while a G4 version is under development with higher power output, modular interior options, and potentially hybrid traction. The platform targets international interoperability and market competitiveness across Europe.
The definition of a high-speed train varies by region, but generally, it refers to trains that operate at speeds of at least 250 km/h (155 mph) on newly built lines and 200 km/h (124 mph) on upgraded lines. In Europe, for example, the UIC (International Union of Railways) considers a commercial speed of 250 km/h as the principal criterion for high-speed rail. In the United States, the definition can include trains operating at speeds ranging from 180 km/h (110 mph) to 240 km/h (150 mph).
➤ See the UIC definition
Customers of this train
Renfe
2024 – …
Renfe
… – …
Le Train
… – …
Background and development
Talgo needs no introduction. On August 21, 1941, Basque engineer Alejandro Goicoechea conducted a field test of a highly unconventional articulated rail set. Pulled by a steam locomotive, this unit reached 75 km/h on the Leganés–Villaverde section. However, the concept had to be marketed—without commercialization, it served no purpose. The entrepreneur swiftly protected his “articulated concept” with two Spanish patents (Nos. 151396 and 159301) and two French ones (Nos. 883808 and 898376) in 1941 and 1942. Thus, the Talgo company was born.
Eighty years later, the company is still going strong. It hasn’t been absorbed by a larger group and remains a key reference in the industrial rail sector. Talgo has built its reputation on articulated trainsets. Unlike Alstom, which uses two-axle bogies, Talgo developed an ingenious system of “independent wheels”, as illustrated in the photo below:
In April 1998, RENFE ordered 32 high-speed trainsets for AVE service between Madrid and Barcelona, slated to open in 2004. This time, instead of purchasing from Alstom (as it did for Madrid–Seville, inaugurated in 1992), RENFE chose a 100% Spanish product. The Talgo-Adtranz consortium (later part of Bombardier) won the tender with what became known as the Talgo 350 project.
This led to the arrival of the Talgo S-102, featuring its iconic long-nosed power cars nicknamed “Pato” (duck) in Spain. Strange-looking or not, this Talgo high-speed train was also exported to Saudi Arabia in a similar configuration.
The first idea
It is difficult to pinpoint where the idea of motorization at Talgo originated. The concept of distributed traction to run at 300 km/h was first introduced in 2000 by Siemens with the BR403 and BR406 trainsets, intended for export. Indeed, on March 24, 2001, Siemens won half of Renfe’s tender for the supply of 32 high-speed trainsets for the Madrid–Barcelona line.
The company offered a modified version of the ICE 3, the trainset used by Deutsche Bahn (German Railways) for its InterCityExpress service. The modifications included increased power (8,800 kW) for better acceleration and a top speed capable of covering the 651 km between Barcelona and Madrid in 2 hours 30 minutes, the ability to operate across a wide range of temperatures, and a reworked interior layout.
This represented a break from the Talgo (and Alstom) tradition of trainsets flanked by two power cars. Distributed traction would later be adopted by NTV-Italo, this time with Alstom. Talgo likely wanted to jump on this new trend.
In September 2008, Talgo publicly unveiled for the first time its Avril (short for Alta Velocidad Rueda Independiente Ligero – High-Speed Independent Lightweight Wheel), during a technical session held at the Higher Technical School of Engineering – ICAI. Thanks to the very low center of gravity of Talgo’s trainsets, the company is able to offer wider cars, allowing for a different seating configuration, as will be discussed further on.
Talgo reportedly worked on two distinct trainset configurations:
- a configuration called G3, which consists of a trainset flanked by two power cars;
- a configuration called G4, which consists of a trainset with distributed traction.
The G4 prototyp
Generally, the articulated trainset design, whether Talgo’s or Alstom’s, does not allow for distributed traction, requiring the traditional setup with locomotives at both ends. Alstom did develop the AGV, an articulated high-speed train with distributed traction, but abandoned the concept after selling just 25 units to NTV-Italo. Talgo tried its own technical solution.
In the presentation documents from 2009 to 2012, Talgo was working on a trainset concept close to Alstom’s AGV technology, with traction distributed across the four bogies of the trainset, located at the front and rear of the train, while at the same time retaining the 14-m short cars, Talgo’s articulated design with independent wheelsets, and an overall length of 200 m, as illustrated by this document presented at a seminar in 2009 (click to enlarge):
The nose configuration of the power cars closely resembled the well-known “Pato” (duck) design of the S-102 trainsets.
The most innovative concept incorporated into the new Talgo traction system combines the advantages of concentrated traction and distributed traction. The Avril’s running gear is based on a fully articulated train architecture, taking full advantage of Talgo’s guided independent wheels, which allow better guidance of the car bodies and a reduction of vibrations transmitted to passengers, resulting in a higher level of ride comfort. The driving axles are necessarily mounted on bogies, while the guided independent wheels in the intermediate cars provide additional weight reduction and significant maintenance cost savings due to fewer axles in the train set. The rear bogie of the end cars is shared with the following car.
The traction equipment is located at the bottom of the end cars, while a higher level in these cars is reserved for passengers. This increases the number of available seats, dedicating more of the train’s length to passengers in a novel approach called “concentrated traction and distributed passengers.” This initially resulted in the image on the right, where it can be seen that the lead car—as well as the last car—can indeed carry passengers.
Moreover, the flexibility of the platform was designed to allow a modular solution, so certain cars in the train set are autonomous in terms of traction. Therefore, they can be included or excluded from the train composition depending on the power required to meet the speed and capacity needs of each application. This reduces development time and costs while providing tailored solutions for the requested service.
Building on this concept, a new generation of bogies, wheelsets, and electronically leveled suspensions was being developed. With a 30% reduction in weight and improved dynamic performance, these innovations were intended to allow speeds of up to 380 km/h while maintaining the highest level of passenger comfort.
It seems that the initial distributed-traction concept appears to have been exploratory. As the project matured, Talgo favored a more standardized and robust solution, prioritizing industrialization, reliability, and market acceptance over the added complexity of a fully distributed traction system on an articulated Talgo platform.
The argument of losing available seats with a two-power-car design did not hold with Talgo because the extra width of the trains allowed for five seats across in standard class, as on the Shinkansen in Japan. Talgo believed that, despite the two power cars, it could offer its customers a train with a capacity of around 550 to 580 passengers.
The core idea was an interoperable train that could be sold across all of Europe. The G4 prototype apparently never found a buyer and therefore has never been built or sold, unlike the G3 project, which we will discuss next.
The specifications of the G3 project
In 2016, RENFE awarded Talgo a contract for 15 new high-speed trainsets, selecting the Avril model developed by the Spanish manufacturer. Valued at €786 million, the deal also included 30 years of maintenance. Rated for 330 km/h, these units were designed for international operations, equipped with ASFA, LZB, ERTMS, and TVM430, signaling a likely deployment on French routes.
The G3 project has characteristics similar to those of the Talgo 350: a trainset composed of twelve cars with independent wheels guided by Talgo technology, plus two conventional power cars, meaning 38% of the wheels are powered, and a maximum commercial speed of 330 km/h, although it was initially planned to reach 350 km/h. However, it features wider car bodies (3,200 mm instead of 2,942 mm) and, consequently, a significantly increased capacity (25 to 33% more depending on the class). It also benefits from improvements in energy efficiency and multiple current collection. To compensate for the effect of the wider body on speed, “significant work was carried out on aerodynamics, improving the train’s front end and underbody.”
Talgo also abandoned the famous “Duck” nose. The power car’s design was created by Pininfarina, and it is commonly called “Swan” because it has a more stylized front end than the Talgo 350.
Talgo sought to optimize the European loading gauge for greater efficiency. In a high fixed-cost industry, maximizing asset utilization and attracting more passengers are key. By carrying more passengers per train, even at lower fares, revenue increases and rail becomes more competitive—an imperative for modern operators.
To maximize passenger capacity on a 200-meter trainset, Talgo designed 3,200 mm wide trailers, around 200–250 mm wider than standard UIC coaches. Coupled with the absence of bogies and very short inter-car gangways, Talgo managed to fit 521 seats, using an unconventional 3+2 seating layout in Turista class and 2+2 in Preferente.
- One layout features 12 trailers and configurations allowing 497 seats in two-class versions, and up to 581 in high-capacity format.
- In double configuration, a high-capacity Avril could offer 1,162 seats on a single level, with just one driver, maximizing track path utilization.
The new power cars have dropped the “duckbill” nose in favor of a sleeker, more aerodynamic design. Interestingly, they are slightly narrower than the trailers to meet curvature requirements under European Technical Specifications for Interoperability (TSI). Each unit houses 8 asynchronous three-phase motors with IGBT converters, delivering 8,000 kW, a relatively low power for high-speed trains—yet it helps reduce energy consumption.
A long testing period
The first prototype was unveiled at InnoTrans 2012 in Berlin. A testing program ran from April 2014 to May 2016 to certify over 100 interoperability characteristics. Unlike the S-102, the Avril was designed for international markets.
A key innovation: the Avril had to be certified for 330 km/h operation with Talgo’s automatic gauge-changing system, a first. All previous gauge-changing Talgo trains were limited to 250 km/h. The prototype was approved in Spain on May 13, 2016, after clocking over 76,000 kilometers, meeting all interoperability specs.
In 2017, RENFE confirmed an option for 15 additional trainsets in various configurations, including 10 with French signaling systems (TVM and KVB).
Targeting the European Market
The Avril project allowed Talgo to anticipate the liberalization and internationalization of the rolling stock and operator markets. The train was designed to be competitive in open markets and to eliminate interoperability barriers.
A first sign of success came from France, where the private operator Le Train signed for 10 Talgo Avril trainsets, to be configured as single-class but offering “higher-than-low-cost” comfort and space for around 40 bicycles.
Beyond operator internationalization, the Avril platform evolved to address mixed-gauge operations in the Iberian Peninsula, resulting in five distinct variants. Of the 40 units currently ordered:
- 15 are equipped for variable gauge (1,435/1,668 mm), destined for RENFE;
- 15 are fixed-gauge (1,435 mm), also for RENFE, 10 of which will be certified for France;
- 10 are for Le Train, to operate only within France, with further technical details yet to be disclosed.
The question of whether the Talgo Avril would become an export product was not really settled in 2026, even though a single foreign operator (Le Train) had placed an order. The future of the AVRIL program will also depend on the restructuring of Talgo’s shareholding that took place in the spring of 2025.
Overall, in 2025, the company Talgo had an order book worth more than 4 billion euros and significant opportunities exceeding 11 billion euros, reflecting customer confidence. 🟧
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