USA: TriMet placed the first of its new Siemens S70 Avanto LRVs into revenue service on August 6, following a VIP trip from Pioneer Square to Hatfield in Hillsboro.

The transit agency has purchased 22 cars, which it calls the Type 4, the last of which had been delivered a few days before the launch. The S70s are longer than TriMet’s earlier vehicles and can carry more passengers, but are approximately 5 tonnes lighter. Each car has only one set of controls, requiring that they always run in two-car sets coupled back-to-back.