Two-way Unimog U 423 cleans Paris tram tracks.

Europe’s tram network is growing rapidly. And the Unimog is rising to the challenge. The French capital in particular is investing in the transport of the future. This is where the Unimog U 423 really comes into its own as a rail cleaning vehicle, especially at night. In the greater metropolitan region of Île-de-France, the road-rail Unimog has long enjoyed a great reputation.

Paris is becoming more mobile.

The city of love is constantly expanding its tram infrastructure. The Paris network, which is managed by the transport company Île-de-France Mobilités, already covers over 120 km of track.

However, the city not only wants to expand its public transport infrastructure, but also maintain the infrastructure that's already in place. The road-rail Unimog U 423 plays a central role in achieving this goal. The French service provider Keolis, a subsidiary of the state-owned railway company SNCF, uses the all-round wonder as a rail cleaning vehicle.

And the Unimog is perfect for the job. Especially when the sun goes down.

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Preventing hazardous contamination.

Rail cleaning is an essential part of tram operation. Oil residues, brake dust and other contamination not only cause disruptions; they are also potential risk factors.

But, rigged out with fantastic equipment, such as high-pressure nozzles in front of the wheels, duct scrapers and cleaning brushes, the Unimog 423 is more than capable of handling these risks. “The vehicle is very robust and versatile”, says Paul Galante, cleaning technician at Keolis.

The Unimog owes its extremely effective equipment to its official sales partner CMAR, which specialises in road-rail applications and which has also met SNCF's stringent requirements since 2018.

Shining bright in both moonlight and sunshine.

“We can deep-clean the rails and also clean the rail surfaces with this machine”, says Paul Galante. A 4 m³ waste container collects the removed dirt. If there is any dirt remaining, Paul Galante and his team have at their disposal a high-pressure spray lance connected to the integrated 2100-litre water tank.

The vehicle is very robust and versatile.

Paul Galante, cleaning technician, Keolis

One of the Unimog's greatest advantages is that the Keolis staff can keep operations running around the clock. With its bright lights and equipment that has been specially optimised for cleaning in the dark, the Unimog works just as effectively and reliably during the Parisian nights.

Yet another highlight of the Unimog U 423 is its road-rail flexibility. With its pneumatic guide wheels, it switches skilfully between rail and road. This option not only makes it the ideal cleaning vehicle, but also allows it to tow broken down trams. With 230 hp and 900 Nm of torque, the Unimog makes short work of demanding tasks such as these.

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Road-rail Unimog gains momentum.

Unimog road-rail technology has a long history, especially in France. Since 1956, bodybuilder CMAR has been developing systems that complement the Unimog's capabilities. CMAR has perfected this technology and even received SNCF approval in 2018.

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Île-de-France Mobilités and the operator of the RATP bus network now own a large fleet of these Unimogs, for example for the T13 tram-train line, which has connected Saint-Cyr-l'École with Saint-Germain-en-Laye via Saint-Nom-la-Bretèche since autumn 2022. Trams are a mode of transport of the future – not only in Paris, but all over the world. The versatile and robust Unimog will continue to be internationally important.