Toruń tramway extension contract awarded
POLAND: A consortium of Balzola Polska and Intop Warszawa has been awarded a 158m złoty contract to build a 5·5 km tramway extension to the Jar residential district in the north of the city of Toruń.
Lisboa finalises metro upgrade package
PORTUGAL: Lisboa Metro has finalised a €114·5m contract with Siemens Mobility and Stadler for resignalling of its three oldest metro lines and the supply of 14 three-car trainsets, having selected the consortium as preferred bidder in January 2020.
Nizhniy Novgorod orders retro-style trams
RUSSIA: The city of Nizhny Novgorod has ordered 11 UTM Type 71-415R (R for ‘retro’) vintage-style trams.
Alstom to supply I-CBTC for more Paris metro lines
FRANCE: Paris transport operator RATP has awarded Alstom a contract to supply its I-CBTC onboard equipment for 44 steel-wheeled MF19 trainsets it is building for use on metro lines 10, 7bis, and 3bis. There are options for a further 47 trains for Line 3, 15 years of maintenance and future ...
Very Light Rail rapid charger installed at Dudley test track
UK: Furrer+Frey GB has installed an ‘ultra-rapid’ battery charge station at the Very Light Rail National Innovation Centre in Dudley, where the prototype vehicle for the planned Coventry VLR line is to be tested.
Thales to provide real-time access to Brescia metro CCTV
ITALY: Thales has been awarded a contract to modernise the Brescia metro’s train-to-ground data communications to provide near real-time transmission of onboard CCTV images to the control centre, and provide the ability to share this video content with other security operators.
Chelyabinsk orders 30 trams
RUSSIA: Sinara Transport Machines has signed a 1·6bn rouble contract to supply 30 trams to the city of Chelyabinsk, enabling the replacement of about 20% of the fleet.
Smart tags boost accessibility and provide localised content
SPAIN: Public transport users in Barcelona can now access a wide range of travel, local area and accessibility information as well as entertainment content through their mobile devices thanks to the use of smart tags.
Torino metro extended to Bengasi
ITALY: The southern extension of Torino’s VAL automated rubber-tyred metro from Lingotto to Bengasi was formally opened by Mayor Chiara Appendino on April 24.
Sofia inaugurates Line 3 extension
BULGARIA: A 3·8 km western extension of Sofia metro Line 3 from Krasno Selo and Gorna Banya opened on April 24.
Twist trams delivered to Tramwaje Śląskie
POLAND: PESA Bydgoszcz has completed the delivery of 35 Twist low-floor trams ordered by Tramwaje Śląskie.
CAF confirms Lisboa Route 15 tram contract
PORTUGAL: Lisboa operator Carris has finalised a €43m contract for CAF to supply 15 metre-gauge Urbos trams and provide five years of maintenance.
Metro driving and operations simulator provides comprehensive training facility
SPAIN: A multi-functional metro operational control, driving and breakdown repair simulator suite has been installed in the Barcelona metro’s training centre at Hospital Clínic station.
Increased investment, rolling stock renewals and elimination of diesel buses in Paris operating contract
FRANCE: A 25% increasing in investment is included a €1·6bn/year operating contract for 2021-24 which has been agreed by Paris operator RATP and regional transport authority Île-de-France Mobilités
Tram operator joins CIRAS health and safety reporting service
UK: Manchester tram operator KeolisAmey Metrolink has joined the CIRAS independent and not-for-profit confidential health and safety reporting service for the transport sector.
Manchester tram airflow helps to limit coronavirus risk, study finds
UK: The constant circulation of air by the ventilation system on Greater Manchester’s light rail vehicles helps to limit the risk of aerosol transmission of viruses, an independent study has found.
First tram for Raide-Jokeri line delivered
FINLAND: The first Smart Artic X54 tram for the future Raide-Jokeri orbital light rail line linking Helsinki and Espoo was delivered by Škoda Transtech on April 9.
Trams with custom lighting enter service as Paris T9 opens
FRANCE: Île-de-France tram line T9 opened on April 10, connecting Porte de Choisy metro station with Place Gaston Viens in Orly in the southeast suburbs of Paris. T9 runs via Ivry-sur-Seine, Vitry-sur-Seine, Choisy-le-Roi and Thiais.
Ufa tramway modernisation agreement signed
RUSSIA. Sinara Urban Transport Solutions, the Ministry of Economic Development and the government of the Republic of Bashkortostan have signed an agreement for a comprehensive modernisation of the tram network in Ufa.
Interurban tramway upgrade begins
CZECH REPUBLIC: Work has begun on a major project to modernise the infrastructure on the 10 km interurban light railway linking the towns of Most and Litvínov with a large petrochemical complex in Ústí nad Labem region, close to the German border.