Alstom begins manufacturing 96 driverless metro cars for Chennai Metro
The production of 32 three-car trainsets is being carried out at the Sri City facility in Andhra Pradesh.
French train maker Alstom started manufacturing 96 Metropolis driverless metro cars for Chennai Metro Phase II at its Sri City facility in Andhra Pradesh on Thursday, according to Moneycontrol and BusinessLine.
The work is being done under a 135-million-euro contract awarded by Chennai Metro Rail Limited (CMRL) in 2025. The project involves creating 32 trainsets, each consisting of three cars, and includes 15 years of full maintenance following the initial warranty.
The Chennai Metro Phase II covers about 119 km, including 76 km of elevated tracks and 43 km of underground sections across three corridors. These Metropolis trains are designed at an engineering centre in Bengaluru and built in Andhra Pradesh under the ‘Make in India’ initiative.
The trains are built for Grade of Automation 4 (GoA4) driverless operations with a speed of 80 km/h. Each three-car set can hold up to 900 passengers and features air conditioning, CCTV cameras, real-time information displays, and specific areas for women and differently-abled commuters.
Alstom India Managing Director Olivier Loison said the company values its long-standing partnership with CMRL, noting that their work began with Chennai's first metro project. He added that starting production of these additional trainsets follows the recent delivery of 108 cars for corridor 4.
Since receiving its first CMRL contract in 2010, Alstom has supplied 208 metro cars for Phase I.