Qingdao metro Line 6 opened on April 26, running 30·8 km from Lingshanwan Bay to Hengyunshan Road with 19 intermediate stations. The line has 29 six-car CRRC Qingdao Sifang Type B1 GoA4 driverless trainsets operating at up to 100 km/h. Construction of a 13·8 km 10-station southwestern extension from Lingshanwan to Qingdao West railway station has been underway since July 2022.
Alstom has been awarded a contract to increase the capacity of the Innovia automated peoplemover at Terminal 1 of Jeddah’s King Abdulaziz International Airport. This will include supplying four additional cars to augment the existing 10, upgrading the signalling and communications, installation of platform screen doors, cybersecurity enhancements and a new control room.
The first six of 34 high-floor light rail vehicles which are being supplied by HeiterBlick and Kiepe entered service with Dortmund operator DSW21 on April 23.
Paris transport operator RATP has issued a €500m green bond to finance the renovation of metro Line 6, upgrading of the Massy maintenance centre and track renewals on the metro and RER networks.
Kiepe Electric is to supply control, on-board power supply, drive system and air-conditioning equipment for a further 10 Tramlink light rail vehicles which Stadler is top supply to Erfurt operator EVAG with, augmenting 14 already in service.
The Madrid municipal government has authorised Metro de Madrid to proceed with a €450m order for 40 fully walk-through CAF metro trainsets. These will be used on lines 6 and 8, enabling the operator to withdraw some of its oldest Series 5000 trainsets.
UKVZ has completed deliveries of 46 single-section, fully low-floor four-axle Type 78-628-02 trams for Lipetsk, ordered with the support from Russian national development agency VEB.RF under the federal programme for the development of urban electric transport.
São Paulo state governor Tarcísio de Freitas has approved the ‘immediate start’ of planning for an infill station between Santo André and Capuava on suburban Line 10-Turquoise. This would serve as an interchange for the planned Line 14-Ônix.
Test running started on April 27 on a 4·4 km extension of Kolkata metro Line 6 (Orange) between Hemanta Mukhopadhyay and Beleghata. The initial 5·4 km five-station southern section of the line opened on March 6.
New York MTA has appointed Rob Free as President of the Long Island Rail Road. He had been Acting President for the last six months. ‘Free was the natural choice for the job – a native Long Islander who’s committed his working life to the LIRR, rising through the ranks from cleaner to running operations to now leading North America’s busiest commuter railroad’, said MTA Chair & CEO Janno Lieber on April 11.