Verkehrsbetriebe Karlsruhe GmbH relies on the proven road-rail vehicles from ZAGRO Bahn- und Baumaschinen GmbH. We delivered four ZAGRO U 423 road-rail vehicles, which are perfectly suited to the challenges of urban operations and the rail world. Whether for rail maintenance and cleaning, vegetation control or shunting work, ZAGRO Unimogs offer reliable and flexible support all year round, around the clock.
To ensure safe operation on tram lines with their tight radii, the ZAGRO U 423 road-rail vehicle was equipped with a turntable rail guide system for standard gauge 1435 mm. Even curves with a radius of only 17 m are navigated with precision.
Thanks to ZAGRO's road-rail technology, the vehicles can switch between road and rail in a very short time. The new owner is thoroughly impressed by the manoeuvrability of the compact vehicles in narrow streets and at stops. With the EasyDrive hydrostatic drive, drivers can continuously adjust the speed to suit the task at hand.
The ZAGRO project team has created two identical configurations from the four U 423 road-rail vehicles. Two vehicles were manufactured as cleaning vehicles and two as work vehicles.
The two cleaning vehicles are equipped with special devices that enable thorough cleaning on the rails and in depots. The main components include a grinding maintenance module for clean rail surfaces, an attachment sweeper, a rail groove cleaner and a suction transfer blower with high suction power. This cleaning equipment is used to remove leaves, rubbish, rubber abrasion and joint tape residues. All contaminants are collected in a large collection container.
The work vehicles were equipped with various attachments for a wide range of tasks, from green space maintenance to de-icing. The equipment includes an extendable telescopic mast lifting platform for maintenance work, a loading crane for flexible material transport, a track sprayer for vegetation control and winter service, and a front boom with mowing head or brush cutter for trimming the profile on both sides of the track. With a de-icing system and a snow plough for winter service and snow clearance, the road-rail vehicles are ideally equipped for multifunctional use on the track system.
In addition, the vehicles have a coupling rod so that trams can also be manoeuvred with the vehicles in the event of an accident. A particular challenge for the ZAGRO project team was to ensure the configuration of all attachments on the U 423 base vehicles and the smooth changeover between the individual attachments.
We would like to thank Verkehrsbetriebe Karlsruhe GmbH for the trust they have placed in our road-rail technology. We are delighted that our vehicles are providing valuable support to the team in Karlsruhe in the demanding tasks of track maintenance and repair.
