The Metropolitan Council (Minneapolis) has awarded a USD 118 million-plus contract for 27 new light rail transit vehicles to Siemens for the Southwest LRT project. Siemens was the sole bidder in the tender. The new vehicles will be “improved versions,” with more room for wheelchairs, automatic passenger counters and ice cutters that will remove sleet from overhead wires. Delivery will start from 2019.
The vehicles will be compatible with the existing Twin Cities LRT tracks, including the Blue Line between downtown Minneapolis and the Mall of America in Bloomington and the Green Line between the downtowns of Minneapolis and St. Paul.
The Siemens contract also includes a provision that would allow the agency to extend the contract to purchase another 50 vehicles in anticipation of the planned Blue Line Extension LRT project.
The planned 14.5-mile Southwest line between downtown Minneapolis and Eden Prairie is scheduled to start construction next year and open in 2021.
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