Bombardier Transportation announced Feb. 19 that it has signed a contract with Transport for London for the provision of new trains, a depot and maintenance services for the flagship London Crossrail project. The contract is valued at approximately £1.3 billion.
Bombardier will deliver 65 nine-car trains and construct a new purpose-built depot at Old Oak Common. The deal also includes maintenance provision for the fleet of trains. The programme is scheduled to commence on April 17.
The new trains will be built at Bombardier's Derby site and will support 840 U.K. manufacturing jobs including 80 apprenticeships. In addition, the project will create around 260 jobs for the construction of the new depot and approximately 80 jobs for the ongoing maintenance of the trains.
The state-of-the-art Bombardier Aventra trains for Crossrail will be over 200 m in length and will be able to carry up to 1,500 passengers. Key features of the new high-capacity trains include air-conditioning and interconnecting walk-through carriages. On-train passenger information systems will deliver real-time travel information to allow passengers to plan their onward journeys. The Aventra trains have been designed with an emphasis on energy-efficiency and the use of intelligent on-train energy management systems. The trains will also incorporate technologically advanced systems for condition-based maintenance including the award-winning Bombardier Orbita predictive maintenance capability and automated vehicle inspection system.
Bombardier will support the maintenance of the new fleet, based on its strong track record of supporting train operators throughout the U.K. at 31 sites and employing 1,800 personnel. In addition to the company's performance in delivering new trains for London's networks, including 191 air-conditioned trains currently being delivered for the London Underground sub-surface lines and new trains provided for London Overground, Bombardier's maintenance teams were recognized at the National Transport Awards 2013 for their support of the capital's train operators during the 2012 Olympics, resulting in the award of Transport Supplier of the Year.
Laurent Troger, president region Western Europe, Middle East and Africa, Bombardier Transportation, said, "I would like to congratulate and thank the entire team in the U.K. for their exceptional work in designing, manufacturing and maintaining high performance trains, culminating in this richly-deserved order. We would like to take this opportunity to thank Transport for London as we jointly embark on this flagship project and look forward to working together with TfL to deliver these iconic new trains for London. As the global rail technology leader, Bombardier is at the vanguard of providing modern mobility solutions that are both economical and sustainable."