Siemens is supplying the Malaysian capital Kuala Lumpur with 58 driverless metro trains. The customer Mass Rapid Transit Corporation Sdn Bhd (MRT Corp) has also ordered the complete equipment for two new depots. The total value of the consortium agreement is some 450 million euros, with Siemens accounting for some 260 million euros. “We have been able to win through in the extremely tough Asian market with our new Metro Inspiro. This is clear evidence of the competitiveness of Siemens in the urban transportation business,” commented Jochen Eickholt, CEO of the Siemens Rail Systems Division.
The Inspiro trains from Siemens are to be deployed on Kuala Lumpur’s new line which will connect the suburbs of Sungai Buloh in the north west and Kajang in the south east with Kuala Lumpur (SBK Line) from December 2016. The SBK Line is the first part of a comprehensive infrastructure plan to reduce the traffic congestion and environmental pollution in the Kuala Lumpur metropolitan area. MRT Corp is a private corporation fully owned by the Minister of Finance Inc, and will act as owner and developer of the metrosytems. More than 100 kilometers of new metro tracks are scheduled by 2020, linking the center of this megacity with its outlying districts. Construction of this 51 kilometer stretch of the SBK Line with its 31 stations is the first and largest part of this development scheme. The alignment of two other lines are currently being studied by Malaysian authorities, but is widely expected to be announced by the middle of 2013. The Kuala Lumpur conurbation is one of the rapidly growing metropolises in Asia that are affected by the enormous density of individual motorized transport and the consequent environmental impact. This state mass transit project, currently the largest in Southeast Asia, is intended not only to give another boost to the Malaysian capital but also to increase the attractiveness of the metropolitan region.
“The vehicles for Kuala Lumpur are based on the new Inspiro metro platform, for which we have already received a significant order from Warsaw. We want to produce a total of 58 four-car trains, designed for fully driverless operation, in conjunction with a local partner company in Malaysia,” explained Sandra Gott-Karlbauer, CEO of Urban Transport at Siemens. The engineering and major components, such as the drive system and bogies, are being supplied from Germany and Austria.
Press release of Siemens, 17 October 2012
