St Petersburg operator Gorelektrotrans is testing the first of four 71-638-02 Polaris trams ordered at cost of 711m roubles from UKVZ, which announced the model at the Innoprom exhibition last year. The tram is 28 m long with five doors on each side and able to negotiate curves down to a radius of 16 m. It has a maximum speed of 75 km/h with 50 seats and a total capacity of 198 passengers at 5/m2.
Berlin transport operator BVG has approved a firm order for 45 more Alstom Urbanliner extra-long trams for delivery from 2026. It has also placed a €5m order for eight Corys driving simulators with a replica driver’s desk and seat and seven monitors providing a 210° field of vision, as well as two portable desktop versions. The simulators will have 100 km of virtual route, with various weather conditions, driving situations and dangerous incidents.
On February 3, Gateway Development Commission awarded a $1·18bn contract for the Frontier-Kemper-Tutor-Perini joint venture to bore 213 m of twin tunnels as part of the Gateway programme to deliver additional rail capacity between New York and New Jersey. This contract covers the section from the Manhattan Bulkhead beneath the Hudson River to the cut-and-cover Hudson Yards Concrete Casing east of 12th Avenue. Work is expected to begin in the coming months and be completed in 2029.
Praha operator DPP has awarded a KC244·7m contract to the Společnost pro TT Muzeum consortium of Porr and Hans Wendel CZ to connect the tracks that are already under construction along the elongated Václavské Náměstí with the existing network at Muzeum. Works also include reconstruction of the existing tracks around Muzeum and construction of a triangular junction and a new stop at Škrétova, covering 400 m of new track in total. Works are expected to start in Q2 this year and be completed by early 2027.
As part of Moskva‘s autonomous tram project, the Centre for Advanced Developments has upgraded infrastructure on Route 10 in the Strogino district to use V2X secure communications technology. The tram receives signals from the infrastructure, and will be able to exchange data with other autonomous road users. ’By the end of 2025, the innovative transport will fully transition to autonomous mode’, said Deputy Mayor for Transport Maksim Liksutov.
Brno operator DPMB has awarded the TT Bystrc – Kamechy consortium of Eurovia, TuCon and Marti Tunnel a KC1·8bn contract to build a double-track tram extension running 1·4 km from the Ečerova terminus, through a 320 m tunnel to the rapidly expanding Kamechy housing estate. The extension will have three stops, and completion is planned by December 2027. Most of the cost will be covered by the European Union under the Transport Operational Programme.
The Parklife Metro consortium of Plenary, Webuild, Siemens Mobility and RATP Dev has produced a mock-up of the 12 trains Siemens is to supply for the future Western Sydney Airport Line. Features will include wide double doors for rapid passenger flows, large windows, flexible seating and standing options, lots of handrails and grips and large multifunctional areas for wheelchairs. The seat upholstery design inspired by the Cumberland Plain incorporates elements such as Ngurra (country) and Badu (water). The grey and blue patterns represent the night sky, and the yellow priority seats depict meeting places near waterholes.
On January 31, the 500 m long Chiaia Funicular in central Napoli linking via Cimarosa to Parco Margherita reopened after a two-year closure for modernisation. The €9m refurbishment included safety enhancements, installation of new escalators and lifts in the stations, and has delivered a 20% increase in capacity.