Stadler has completed its first two Class 555 metro trains for Nexus, the owner and operator of Tyne and Wear Metro.
Nexus’s contract with Stadler, valued at 300m GBP (350.5m EUR | 376.25m USD), is for 46 metro trains. These will be delivered up to 2024, with the first expected before the end of this year.
The new trains have modern features such as charging points and air conditioning and will offer improved energy efficiency and accessibility.
They will cut energy consumption by almost a third, says Stadler, and will feature an automatic sliding step at every door.
This will make travel easier for the 50,000 wheelchair passengers that use Tyne and Wear Metro, as well as for travellers with buggies, luggage or bicycles.
As the trains roll off Stadler’s Switzerland-based production line, they will undergo several months of static and dynamic testing, including being transferred to a larger test track in the Czech Republic to be put through their paces.
At this point, some of the Metro drivers will be invited to try out the new trains for the first time.
“Once the testing phase is complete the first new Class 555 Metro train will be ready to be brought over to the UK.
“These new trains are going to deliver a step-change in quality for our customers when they start entering full service next summer.”
Stadler has also been involved in the 70 million GBP (81.79m euros | 87.79m USD) rebuild of Gosforth depot in Newcastle.
This is almost complete, and will become home for the new Metro trains.
