USA: Bi-State Development Agency has formally awarded Siemens Mobility a contract supply 55 high-floor light rail vehicles with battery onboard energy storage for the MetroLink network serving the greater St Louis region.
Siemens was the sole bidder for the order, which the agency approved last year.
The 73 km Y-shaped network is currently operated by a fleet of 87 Siemens SD-400 and SD-460 LRVs, of which the first were ordered 1990, and are now reaching the end of their service life.
The new Type SS220 LRVs will have a spacious interior with large windows, and space for pushchairs, wheelchair users and bikes. An interactive GPS mapping display will make it easier for passengers to see their location.
The batteries will enable up to 8 km of off-wire operation. This will be the second deployment of the energy storage system on a Siemens LRV in the USA, after the S700 low-floor vehicles delivered to Charlotte from August 2021. It ‘will enhance operational flexibility, resiliency and convenience’, Michael Cahill, President Rolling Stock North America explained when the order was announced on March 13.
The LRVs will be assembled in Sacramento, with the first set to replace the first vehicle which was produced at the site more than 30 years ago.
