The first stage of Sydney Metro in the Australian province of New South Wales, The North West Metro line, has commenced commercial services.
The 36km-long rail line is the first fully automated driverless metro system in the country. It stretches from Rouse Hill to Chatswood and includes 13 stations, as well as a depot.
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Alstom was responsible for the metro line’s project management, signalling and delivery of 22 Metropolis trains to run on the Sydney Metro line, under a contract awarded in September 2014.
The French rail company will also provide maintenance services for the trains, signalling, depot operations and equipment for 15 years.
It includes the application of Alstom’s HealthHub predictive maintenance tools for the Northwest Metro, such as Catenary Tracer, Track Tracer, Train Tracer, broken rail detection and point machine detection.
Alstom Asia-Pacific senior vice-president Ling Fang said: “Sydney has now joined other great cities of the world, including Paris, Amsterdam, Barcelona and Singapore, that benefit every day from Alstom’s metro solutions.
“The fully automated driverless metro is a first for Australia and will provide a step-change for the commuters of Sydney.”
The six-car Metropolis trains are designed by Alstom in France, and assembled at its Indian facility with associated support from centres in other countries.
They feature three double-doors per car to facilitate passenger flows. The trains are also equipped with LED lighting, CCTV monitoring, emergency intercoms and real time travel information system.
Alstom has installed its computer based train control system Urbalis 400 on the trains to streamline operations.
The Sydney Metro line is currently being extended from Chatswood to Bankstown. By 2024, the system will comprise 31 stations and 66km of standalone metro railway.
