INDIA: BEML has begun production of a prototype 5RS-DM driverless metro trainset for the city of Bengaluru.
In August 2023 BEML beat ‘stiff global competition’ to win a Rs31·77bn contract to supply operator Bangalore Metro Rail Corp Ltd — which retains the former name of the city — with 53 six-car trainsets for lines 2 (Blue) and 6 (Pink) and provide 15 years of maintenance.
BEML said it would be the first Indian rolling stock manufacturer to design, manufacture and supply driverless trainsets. They are being developed by its in-house engineering teams in Bengaluru, and will be producing using high-tensile stainless steel and fitted with indigenously manufactured bogies. The cars will have stainless steel seats, grab poles and rails, two roof-mounted air-conditioning units, an IP-based announcement and information system, LCD-based dynamic route map and CCTV. Safety features will include obstacle and derailment detection systems.
‘We are privileged to inaugurate this new prototype manufacturing facility in Bangalore, which is rapidly becoming a hub for India’s top metro rail manufacturing’, said BEML Chairman & Managing Director Shantanu Roy on August 31. ‘Together with BMRCL, we are committed to delivering the most advanced metro trainsets, providing an enhanced urban mobility experience for Bangalore city’s commuters.’
BMRCL Managing Director Maheshwar Rao said ’BEML possesses the most advanced facilities and a dedicated team of engineers capable of delivering this ambitious project, which will soon fulfil the aspirations of metro commuters travelling to the Airport Road and across Bangalore, which is likely to reduce a lot of road congestion in near future’.
