Buffet cars
What food/beverage
solutions have featured
on your latest projects?
As a strategic partner of CRRC
Changchun, the world’s biggest rolling
stock manufacturer, tangerine has
designed five high-speed trains for
the domestic Chinese market and
international services over the last
year. The catering car has been
an area our designers have been
closely considering as part of the
design projects.
We are always looking to create
stunning train designs that incorporate
the latest innovations, enhance
passenger experience and support
seamless onboard service. From
our experience working in the Chinese
market, we have learned about the
shifting habits of consumers and
innovative new service solutions
that operators are adopting.
What trends have you
seen in food service?
Due to the current market standard
– offering relatively poor choice, low
quality and high prices for food and
drink on board trains – China Rail
is trialling a new service tactic to
supply food and beverages on board.
Restaurant chains such as KFC and
McDonalds, as well as smaller local
outlets, register with the service to
deliver food to customers. Trials are
running at 27 stations across China,
allowing people to use an app to
pre-order the food of their choice,
which is then delivered to the platform
and brought straight to the passenger’s
seat by onboard staff.
How will these trends
influence train design?
This is an example of an innovative
service solution that improves the
customer experience through added
convenience and choice.
This also potentially has profound
implications for the physical design
of trains. If you no longer need
dedicated catering carriages, the
space allocated for meal preparation
and service can instead be repurposed
to accommodate more seats or
alternatives such as zones for
relaxation or socialising.
We think this is a good thing,
as operators can concentrate on
what they should do best – delivering
a world-class train service at a good
price, rather than trying, and often
failing, to be a good caterer.
WEIWEI HE
DIRECTOR FOR CHINA
AT TANGERINE
ABOVE: A catering car concept for a
high-speed train, created by tangerine
ANNUAL SHOWCASE 2019 Railway Interiors International 51
China Rail is trialling
a new service tactic
to supply food and
beverages on board