5 photos from Wikimedia Commons · credits & licences
- 1. Rere Hava Tournan: Eole99· CC BY-SA 3.0
- 2. MI 2N Eole 34E: Filly07· CC BY-SA 4.0
- 3. Extremite-z22500-haussman-saint-lazare1: Remontees· CC BY-SA 4.0
- 4. Extremite-z22500-haussman-saint-lazare2: Remontees· CC BY-SA 4.0
- 5. MI 2N Z22500 SNCF Gare Rosa Parks RER E: Momo Ratp· CC BY-SA 4.0
what is it?
The SNCF Class Z 22500, also known as the MI 2N "Éole" (French: Matériel d'Interconnexion à 2 Niveaux, lit. 'Interconnecting Bilevel Set'), is a double-deck, dual-voltage electric multiple unit (EMU) operated on RER E, part of the Réseau Express Régional (RER), a hybrid suburban commuter and rapid transit system serving Paris and the surrounding Île-de-France region. The Z 22500 is the version of the MI 2N series operated by the SNCF. It closely resembles the MI 2N "Altéo" variant operated by the RATP Group, although the two variants differ in their motorization and interior layout. A total of 43 five-car trainsets were built by a consortium of Alstom (then GEC Alsthom) and Bombardier.
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 28 years ago, in 1998.
- Top speed is 1.1× a car on the Dutch motorway (130 km/h).
- 3.6 MW is about 42 family cars (~85 kW each) flat out.
- Weighs about as much as 46 African elephants (~6 t each).
- 112 m long: about 25 cars parked nose to tail.
- Seats 1,337: 27 full city buses (~50 seats each).
- Served for 28 years (1998–2026).
multiple unit: A self-propelled train: motors are spread under the passenger cars, so no separate locomotive.
spec sheet
- built
- 1998
- in service from
- 1998
- retired
- 2026
- status
- retired
- number built
- 53
- kind
- multiple unit
- traction
- electric
- origin
- 🇫🇷 France
- builders
- Alstom, ALSTOM Transportation Germany
- operators
- Société nationale des chemins de fer français, SNCF Voyageurs
- top speed
- 140 km/h
- power
- 3.6 MW
- gauge
- 1,435 mm standard gauge
- electric system
- Overhead line:, 3, 3
- wheel arrangement
- 2′2′+Bo′Bo′+2′2′+Bo′Bo′+2′2′
- formation
- 5 cars per trainset (R+M+R1+M+R) and before 4 cars per trainset (R+M+M+R)
- length
- 112 m
- weight
- 277 t
- capacity
- 1,337 passengers
- Dutch name
- SNCF Z 22500
From the Wikipedia infobox and Wikidata. Blank means the sources don't say.
Sources: Wikidata Q2628289, Wikipedia: SNCF Class Z 22500 (CC BY-SA 4.0).Updated 2026-10-25.