Praha awards first Line D construction contract
CZECH REPUBLIC: Construction of Praha metro Line D is expected to get underway next year, following the award of the civil works contract for the most challenging section of the 10·6 km route.
12 confirmed dead in Zhengzhou metro flood
CHINA: Officials in Zhengzhou have confirmed that 12 passengers died and another five were seriously injured after parts of the city’s metro network were flooded on July 20.
Sydney Metro West tunnelling contract awarded
AUSTRALIA: The first of three major tunnelling contracts for the 24 km Sydney Metro West has been awarded to a joint venture of Acciona Construction Australia Pty Ltd and Ferrovial Construction (Australia) Pty Ltd, Transport for New South Wales announced on July 16.
Shaoxing opens first line of planned 208 km metro network
CHINA: The first metro line in Shaoxing has opened, running 20·3 km from Guniangqiao and China Textile City.
Fukuoka Subway orders sky and mountain liveried trainsets
JAPAN: Fukuoka City Transport Bureau has ordered four four-car Series 3000A trainsets to support an expansion of services when the Fukuoka Subway’s 12 km Nanakuma Line is extended by 1·6 km from Tenjin Minami to Hakata in 2022.
Wi-fi used to estimate station usage
UK: Transport for London is using aggregated and depersonalised data from its wi-fi network to provide real-time information on how busy London Underground stations are at any particular time of the day.
Vancouver SkyTrain expansion funding announced
CANADA: Prime Minister Justin Trudeau has confirmed that the federal government would provide up to C$1·3bn to meet 40% of the cost of the proposed Surrey Langley Extension of Vancouver’s SkyTrain automated light metro network, subject to due diligence and the approvals process.
Athens metro Line 4 main works to begin
GREECE: Major construction works for Athens metro Line 4 are to start this summer, after the contract for final design work, construction and commissioning was signed by Attiko Metro and a consortium of Alstom, local construction company Avax and Italian tunnelling company Ghella.
Paris orders more MP14 trainsets for Line 11
FRANCE: Île-de-France Mobilités has exercised an option to order a further 19 MP14 rubber-tyred trainsets from Alstom for the Paris Metro.
Xuzhou opens north-south metro line
CHINA: Xuzhou metro’s 18·1 km north-south Line 3 opened on June 28, linking Xiadian and Gaoxinqunan with 16 underground stations.
Automated metro opens in Suzhou
CHINA: The fully automated Line 5 of the Suzhou Rail Transit network opened on June 29, running 44·1 km from Taihu Xiangshan to Yangchenghu Nan and serving 34 stations.
Baku metro trains delivered
AZERBAIJAN: Transmasholding’s Metrowagonmash plant at Mytishi in Russia has delivered a further four of the 12 five-car trainsets which Baku Metropoliten ordered in October 2019 for delivery by 2023.
London Underground detrainment equipment contract awarded
UK: Siemens Mobility has selected Huntingdon-based composites specialist TRB Lightweight Structures to supply emergency evacuation equipment for the 94 Inspiro trainsets which it is to build to replace London Underground’s Piccadilly Line fleet from 2025.
Changzhou’s second metro line inaugurated
CHINA: The second metro line in Changzhou was opened for revenue service on June 28, running for 19·8 km from Qingfeng Park to Wuyilu via an interchange station Line 1 at Cultural Palace station.
Hangzhou Line 8 includes 2·8 km under-river tunnel
CHINA: Hangzhou metro Line 8 was opened for revenue service on June 28, serving the Qiantang New Area to the northeast of the city.
Line 2 East metro extension opens in Manila
PHILIPPINES: President Rodrigo Duterte visited the newly completed Masinag station on July 1 to inaugurate a 4·2 km extension of LRT Line 2 from Santolan. Revenue services will begin on July 5, from when there will be two weeks of free travel.
First Kawasaki R211 Subway cars arrive in New York
USA: MTA New York City Transit took delivery of its first five R211 metro cars at the South Brooklyn Transfer Yard on July 1, following delivery from manufacturer Kawasaki Rail Car.
Tyne & Wear Metro train interior design revealed
UK: The interiors of the new Tyne & Wear Metro fleet will provide an ‘open-plan and linear’ seating layout, with design changes made following feedback from passengers, staff and user groups.
Hong Kong completes its longest metro line
CHINA: Revenue services began operating on the Kai Tak – Hung Hom section of Hong Kong’s Tuen Ma Line through east Kowloon on June 27, completing the east-west corridor across the New Territories.
Xiamen metro line opens with 4 km undersea tunnel
CHINA: Xiamen metro Line 3 opened on June 25, running 26·5 km from the city’s main railway station to Caicuo and including a 4 km undersea section.