10 photos from Wikimedia Commons · credits & licences
- 1. Z20900mona gennevilliers: Eole99· CC BY-SA 3.0
- 2. Z 20900 IDF Mobilités sur le RER C: Momo Ratp· CC BY-SA 4.0
- 3. Technicentre Paris Nord - Joncherolles - Poste de conduite Z 20900 01: Clicsouris· CC BY-SA 3.0
- 4. Z20900 Carmillion sièges: Andrixim· CC BY-SA 4.0
- 5. Z20900 sqy: Eole99· CC BY-SA 3.0
- 6. Z20900karo chaville: Eole99· CC BY-SA 3.0
- 7. Z 20900 - Remorque salle haute 01: Clicsouris· CC BY-SA 3.0
- 8. RER C - Gare ChavilleVélizy 2: Eole99· CC BY-SA 3.0
- 9. RER C - Gare ChavilleVélizy 7: Eole99· CC BY-SA 3.0
- 10. RER C - Gare LesGrésillons 21: Eole99· CC BY-SA 3.0
what is it?
The SNCF Class Z 20900 is a double-deck, dual-voltage electric multiple unit (EMU) trainset operated on RER C of the Réseau Express Régional (RER), a hybrid suburban commuter and rapid transit system serving Paris and its Île-de-France suburbs. Fifty-four four-car trainsets were built by a consortium of Alstom and Bombardier Transportation between 2001 and 2004. The first set entered passenger service in July 2001.
who runs it
base stats
Bars compare against all trains: 600 km/h (maglev), 1,700 seats; power, weight and number built on a log scale up to 20 MW, 1,000 t and 20,000 built.
fun facts
- First built 25 years ago, in 2001.
- Top speed is 1.1× a car on the Dutch motorway (130 km/h).
- 3.5 MW is about 41 family cars (~85 kW each) flat out.
- Weighs about as much as 41 African elephants (~6 t each).
- 104 m long: about 23 cars parked nose to tail.
- Still in service after 25 years.
multiple unit: A self-propelled train: motors are spread under the passenger cars, so no separate locomotive.
spec sheet
- built
- 2001
- in service from
- 2001
- status
- in service
- number built
- —
- kind
- multiple unit
- traction
- electric
- origin
- 🇫🇷 France
- builders
- Alstom, ALSTOM Transportation Germany
- operators
- Société nationale des chemins de fer français, Transilien
- top speed
- 140 km/h
- power
- 3.5 MW
- gauge
- 1,435 mm standard gauge
- electric system
- Overhead line:, 3, 3
- formation
- 4 cars per trainset
- length
- 104 m
- weight
- 245 t
- Dutch name
- SNCF Z 20900
From the Wikipedia infobox and Wikidata. Blank means the sources don't say.
Sources: Wikidata Q2913447, Wikipedia: SNCF Class Z 20900 (CC BY-SA 4.0).Updated 2026-10-25.