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11/2/2016
The San Diego Metropolitan Transit System (SDMTS) has signed a $171 million contract with Siemens to purchase 45 new S70 light-rail vehicles. Thirty-six of the vehicles will be used on the Mid-Coast Trolley expansion, which will extend the UC San Diego Blue Line by 11 miles. The remaining vehicles will be used to increase frequency on the current Blue and Orange lines, Siemens officials said in a press release. The order calls for low-floor vehicles with a redesigned middle section to improve passenger flow. The units also will feature better wheelchair accessibility and bicycle storage. SDMTS also opted to purchase parts, tools and training for an additional $17 million, agency spokesman Rob Schupp said in an email.
The first vehicles are expected to arrive in late 2018.Siemens has been providing light-rail vehicles to SDMTS since 1981. The latest order will bring the total number of units supplied to the agency to 244, making SDMTS Siemens' largest U.S. customer.
The company has recently signed contracts to supply light-rail vehicles for Seattle's Sound Transit and the Twin Cities' Metro Transit.