The Chennai Metro Rail Limited has given Alstom a contract for the design, production, supply, testing, and commissioning of 78 advanced metro coaches worth €98 million (INR 798 crores) (CMRL). These brand-new metro vehicles will run over a 26 km track that connects Poonamallee Bypass and Light House via 28 stops (18 elevated and 10 underground).
The contract's scope comprises the production of 26 metro trains (three-car configurations) with a top speed of 80 kmph as well as staff training. Alstom's Metropolis metros will provide over 11 million city residents with safe and dependable passenger transportation thanks to a 25 KV power supply for maximum energy efficiency. Additionally, through connecting important zones, the project as a whole will greatly contribute to the socio-economic growth.
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The metro trains are
built and engineered to operate with Unattended Train Operations, which allows
for driverless operation (UTO). These trains can entirely ignore signals, and
the Actions Control Center will keep an eye on their operations (OCC).
These metro cars will be
produced entirely domestically at one of Alstom's largest urban rolling stock
production facilities in Sricity, Andhra Pradesh, in keeping with the
government's "Make in India" initiative. This plant can produce 480
cars annually, and it has a significant clientele that includes both domestic
and foreign metro projects.
"Our manufacturing
experience in India began with the trains for Chennai Metro Phase-I in 2014,
which was also the first Rolling Stock order win for us in the nation,"
said Olivier Loison, Managing Director of Alstom India. We are really proud of
this new victory and grateful to be dependable partners in enhancing Chennai's
urban transportation system.
For the 54km of the first
phase + Extension of Corridor-I from the Airport to Wimco Nagar and Corridor-II
from Chennai Central to St. Thomas Mount, Alstom previously produced and
delivered 208 metro vehicles. These trains have regenerative braking systems,
automatic train operation (ATO), automatic train protection (ATP), and both to
ensure significant energy savings. Additionally, the business successfully
designed, tested, and put into service the 45 km of corridors I and II of the
Chennai Metro.
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"We are pleased to
work together with Alstom once more on this big contract for Chennai Metro
Phase-II. The cutting-edge trains supplied by Alstom have been running on our
metro routes for many years, demonstrating their strong capacity to serve the
India market. According to Rajesh Chaturvedi, Director of Systems &
Operation for Chennai Metro Rail Limited (CMRL), "We are optimistic that
the Phase II project will improve connectivity while having a minimal negative
impact on the environment and improving the lives of millions of people living
in the city.