Australia’s first fully-automated rail service, the newly launched North West Line by Sydney Metro, has been made in India. The new-generation metro trains were manufactured by French multinational company Alstom in Sri City, an integrated business city located in India’s southern state of Andhra Pradesh, thirty-five miles north of Chennai.
Designed in France and assembled at Alstom’s center of excellence in Sri City, these fully automated driverless trains were made with contributions from the company’s operations in Australia, Brazil, China, and Belgium.
So far, Alstom has supplied 22 six-car Metropolis trains from its India facility. Each fully-automated train consists of various modern features including 3 double-doors per car for improved access and passenger flows, LED lighting, large windows, emergency intercoms, CCTV cameras, the latest way-finding aids for customer information as well as real-time travel information.
Other features of these trains include:
- Level access between the platform and train and three double doors per side per carriage for faster loading and unloading
- Heating and air-conditioning
- Wheelchair spaces, separate priority seating, and emergency intercoms
- Continuous mobile phone coverage throughout the metro network
- Two multi-purpose areas per train for prams, luggage, and bicycles
