Alstom metro trainsets enter commercial operation in Baku

Alstom’s new metro trainsets for the Baku metropolitan system have entered into commercial operation. The 3 metros, consisting of 5 cars each, have successfully undergone all tests and will now be used on the existing “Red and Green” metro lines.

For the first time in Azerbaijan, the metro trainsets have inter-car walkways to optimise passenger traffic flow and vertical handrails near the doors to enhance passenger safety when the train is in motion. The metros’ capacity has been increased to 1,047 passengers and 202 ergonomic seats and the head car has been fitted with a dedicated area for persons with reduced mobility. The metros are equipped with LED lights to ensure greater luminosity and better energy savings. All materials used in the train’s interior meet global requirements in terms of anti-vandalism design. The new 1520 mm gauge metro cars have been produced at the Metrovagonmash1plant.

“These new metro cars will ensure safer and more comfortable trips in Baku. They have undergone the strictest quality control and comply with the highest standards. We intend to expand our co-operation with the Baku metro system and we will continue delivering advanced metro cars, jointly manufactured in Azerbaijan, into the future,” said Martin Vaujour, Senior Vice President of Alstom Transport for the CIS region

Baku’s underground system was commissioned in 1967. 2010 saw approval of the 20-year phase-gate development program related to Baku’s metro, providing for the construction of 53 new stations and 84.3 km of new metro lines by 2030. A total of 1,100 metro cars are to be replaced by 2028. The trains for the first new lines being built are to be purchased.

Alstom is expanding its presence on the CIS market through local partners, implementing the localisation of manufacturing. In 2010, Alstom Transport acquired a blocking minority stake in Transmashholding (TMH), Russia’s leading railway manufacturer. To date, Alstom and TMH have created 4 joint ventures in Russia and Kazakhstan to carry out projects for the 1520 mm gauge market.