Siemens has received an order for 45 new S70 light rail vehicles (LRVs) from the San Diego Metropolitan Transit System (MTS). The new vehicles will allow service enhancements on existing rail lines and provide the necessary LRVs to operate the 11-mile extension of the UC San Diego Blue Line that is now under construction.
Siemens has been providing LRVs to MTS since 1981. This order will bring the total number of vehicles supplied to MTS to 244, making MTS the largest U.S. light rail customer for Siemens. MTS recently sold or retired 71 Siemens U-2 vehicles, which were the original vehicles on the nation’s first modern light rail system. The original 15-mile segment from the International Border to downtown San Diego has since grown to more than 53 miles of double-tracked railway that serves the entire urbanized area of San Diego.
The new order of low-floor LRVs will feature a redesigned middle section of the vehicle to improve passenger flow including greater wheelchair accessibility and bicycle storage. MTS will use 36 of the 45 new LRVs on its Mid-Coast Trolley expansion, a new service to help manage current and future travel demand to and from the University City community. The additional nine vehicles will be used to increase frequency on the UC San Diego Blue and Orange lines.
”Our relationship with Siemens is a true partnership,” said MTS Chief Executive Officer Paul Jablonski. “We work together at every step to design the best-possible vehicle for our system and, more importantly, our riders.”
“Siemens is proud to continue our 35-year relationship with MTS by being chosen to build these advanced technology light rail vehicles for the city of San Diego,” said Michael Cahill, president of Siemens Rolling Stock. “These California-built vehicles will help continue MTS’ legacy of outstanding service to its riders and help accommodate riders on their growing rail system.”
The S70s will be built at the Siemens rail manufacturing hub in Sacramento, Calif. The plant, which has been in operation for almost 30 years, is powered in part by two megawatts of solar energy and currently employs nearly 1,000 people. Siemens is currently the leading supplier of light rail vehicles in North America.
The first vehicles are expected to arrive in late 2018.
