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Okayama, Japan, light-rail planners Nov. 1 placed an order with Japan-based coachbuilder Niigata Engineering Co. for one GT4N-ZR light-rail vehicle (LRV), with an option for four additional units.

Under contract terms, DaimlerChrysler Rail Systems (Adtranz) would manufacture the low-floor bogies, plus mechanical and electrical components in Germany, and then deliver them to partner Niigata in 2001.

Five LRVs manufactured by the consortium already operate in Kumamota, Japan, on standard-gauge tracks; the Okayama order would operate on three-and-a-half-foot small-gauge tracks. Nine of Japan’s 18 tram operators use small gauge systems.