Alstom starts manufacturing 96 driverless Metro cars for Chennai Metro

New Delhi: French train maker Alstom on Thursday said it has commenced manufacturing 96 Metropolis driverless metro cars for Chennai Metro at its Sri City facility in Andhra Pradesh, under a 135-million-euro contract awarded in 2025.

The Chennai Metro Phase II spans approximately 119 km, with over 76 km elevated and 43 km underground across three corridors and their inter-corridor sections. In a statement, Alstom said that as part of the contract, it will manufacture 32 metro trainsets in three-car configurations and provide 15 years of comprehensive maintenance after the warranty period.

Olivier Loison, Managing Director - Alstom India, said, “We value our long-standing partnership with CMRL (Chennai Metro Rail Limited). Our work together began with Chennai’s first metro rail project, which also led to the setting up of our Sri City facility to build trains for Chennai Metro Phase I”.

The recent delivery completion of the 108 cars for corridor 4, and now the start of production of additional trainsets reinforces our enduring association with CMRL today, and for the future, he added. Configured for Grade of Automation 4 (GoA4) driverless operations with an operational speed of 80 km/h, Alstom’s Metropolis trains feature regenerative braking and advanced cybersecurity.

Each three-car trainset accommodates up to 900 passengers, equipped with air conditioning, perch seats, CCTV cameras, real-time passenger information displays, and dedicated spaces for women and differently-abled commuters. Since being awarded its first contract by Chennai Metro Rail Limited (CMRL) in 2010, Alstom has delivered 208 metro cars for Phase I.

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The Hans India