UK: An order for Stadler to supply a further four trains for the Tyne & Wear Metro has been confirmed by transport authority Nexus, taking the total to 46 five-car sets.
The firm order has been placed after £95m was secured for the Metro Flow programme from the government’s Transforming Cities Fund. Metro Flow involves the doubling of the three remaining sections of single track line on the line between Pelaw and South Shields, which will enable an increase in service frequencies across the network, reduce journey times and improve reliability. Buckingham Group Contracting has been awarded a £55m contract for the infrastructure works and is expected to begin work on site in September 2022.
Meanwhile, Stadler has completed design work for the new fleet and begun manufacturing the first bodyshells. The first trains is scheduled to be delivered in 2022 and enter service from mid-2023, with deliveries running through to 2024.
‘I’m delighted to confirm that we have been able to order four extra new Metro trains on top of the 42 which are already on order, and that Stadler has now started the manufacturing process’, said Nexus Director of Finance & Resources John Fenwick on August 7.
‘Securing the funding to order these additional trains is the culmination of an enormous amount of work in successfully making the case for the Metro Flow project, which is a key tenet of our recovery plan as we emerge from the coronavirus pandemic. The additional trains are required so that we can enhance the Metro timetable, delivering a more frequent and reliable service for our customers.’
