BRAZIL: CRRC Changchun has unveiled the first of 24 four-car metro trainsets it is supplying for Belo Horizonte’s lines 1 and 2.
The vehicle was presented at the manufacturer’s site on June 18 to a delegation from the government of Minas Gerais including State Governor Romeu Zema.
Belo Horizonte metro operating concessionaire Metrô BH announced the purchase of 24 four-car metro trainsets from CRRC in June 2024, for an approximate value of R$700m.
The vehicle features Automatic Train Operation equipment, passenger information screens and large windows. The first trainset is expected to be shipped to Brazil by September for testing, earlier than the original 2026 schedule.
The new vehicles are to replace some of the 25 Series 900 trainsets on Line 1, which were manufactured in the 1980s and lack air-conditioning. The first 10 trainsets are expected to enter service on Line 1 by the end of 2026.
The new trainsets will also operate on the future Line 2, which will run 10∙5 km from Nova Suíça on Line 1 to Barreiro in the southwest of the city, serving seven stations. Construction of Line 2 started last September and revenue services are expected to commence in 2028.
In October 2023, Metrô BH awarded Alstom a contract to automate the existing Line 1 and the future Line 2. Alstom is supplying new signalling to support ATO as well as onboard equipment for the existing fleet plus the 24 newly purchased trains.
