FRANCE: A €60m contract for the supply of platform edge gates as part of the conversion of Marseille’s two-line rubber-tyred metro to driverless operation has been awarded to Wabtec subsidiary Faiveley Transport, Eiffage Génie Civil Méditerranée and Eiffage Energie Systems Mediterranee.
The 62 platforms at the 29 stations on lines 1 and 2 will each be equipped with 12 sets of 1·7 m high platform gates, emergency egress doors and fixed screens. There will also be more than 200 digital information displays.
A patented adjustable ramp will reduces the vertical gap between the platform and the train to a maximum of 40 mm to facilitate boarding by people with reduced mobility.
Wabtec said the gates are designed to meet the latest cybersecurity standards and customised to meet the architect’s brief on volume, shape and materials.
The contract includes reinforcement of the platform edge, design, supply, installation, testing and commissioning, as well as training for staff to maintain the gates.
Work on site will begin in 2023 and the project will be completed by the end of 2026. Installation will take less than 3 h using a purpose-built works train, and will be undertaken at night so that the metro can remain open throughout the project.
‘The platform gates form part of a complete passenger transfer system’, said Wabtec Transit President Lilian Leroux, on October 5. ‘We are also supplying Alstom with the onboard doors for the new metro cars.’
