These trains run on diesel so if Telsa wants to be more serious they'll put hydrogen fuel cell or BEV trains into service:
https://insideevs.com/news/685080/tesla-giga-berlin-train-sh...
I suspect the person you are replying to finds it ironic because Tesla is largely competing with the rebirth of good public transports in the west. Musk hates them and regularly says so.
What we need is good public transports for most people, and EVs as small as possible for the rest. That's not what Musk (and Tesla) offer.
But not all train lines are electrified.
There are now Hydrogen-based trains in Northern Germany for such tracks.
https://www.dw.com/en/german-railway-firm-ushers-in-new-era-...
Precisely. Thanks :-).
> What we need is good public transports for most people, and EVs as small as possible for the rest. That's not what Musk (and Tesla) offer.
Spot on!
Tesla is by a huge margin largely competing with ICE cars.
Tesla is competing against that if we look at where we allocate our funds, our governments seem to prefer to subsidise big electric cars and new roads more than cycle lanes and railways...
"EVs aren't here to save the climate, they are here to save cars"
(I'm genuinely surprised the train isn't already electric; if I've been on a diesel here, I've not noticed).
Using batteries isn't a goal. It's something we do when there is no alternative.
You need more space above the train for the power line, which means all bridges and tunnels have to be adapted, thus rebuilt. You need space in the side to place the masts, which may mean acquiring land or some complex engineering in close (hilly?) areas.
This then often means that regulation treats it as a major change, thus the whole signaling system and other aspects have to be adapted to current standards.
And then you need all the side infrastructure like substations etc.
In the end it's almost as expensive as building a new line.