The group CAF won the tender to supply 102 LRVs -light rail- to the city of Boston, in the United States, for a total amount of 811 million dollars (811 million euros), as reported by the Basque company. Specifically, on August 31, the board of directors of the Massachusetts Bay Transportation Authority (MBTA) agreed to select CAF USA as the successful bidder for the supply of those 102 LRVs that will circulate on the Green Line in the city of Boston.
The base contract covers the manufacture of 102 vehicles, two driving simulators, park parts, special tools and test equipment for the supplied vehicles, as well as their warranty service, for a period of three years. It also contemplates several options for the purchase of vehicles and additional equipment to the 102 LRVswhich the MBTA could run for years to come.
CAF has specified that the MBTA is the public agency responsible for operating most public transportation services in the Boston area. This is the second project of the CAF Group for the city, since in 2014 the MBTA also awarded CAF USA the manufacture of 24 LRVs, called Type 9, which currently circulate on the aforementioned Green Line, “once again reaffirming its full confidence in the CAF Group”. This line consists of four branches throughout its more than 30 kilometers long, being the first line built in the capital of Massachusetts, with sections of tunnels dating from the late nineteenth century, making it the first underground line in the United States.
The new units called Type 10 will replace the Type 7 and 8 models that currently serve the line, they will be made up of 7 modules, they will be 100% low-floor and will have priority areas for passengers with reduced mobility, “maximizing in this forms its capacity and accessibility to the vehicle”.
CAF has specified that the US market has had the company’s presence for years. CAF has a production facility in the United States, located in the town of Elmira (State of New York) and has developed a large number of projects in the country, including the 96 units supplied to the Washington city subway, the 130 passenger cars for the operator Amtrak, trams for the cities of Kansas City and Cincinnatias well as the supply of LRVs for Houston, Sacramento, Pittsburgh and Boston.
CAF is currently immersed in the manufacturing of the third order for new trams for the expansion of the tramway network of the city of Kansas City and in the LRV project for the city of Marylandwhich includes the manufacture of 26 LRVs for the line known as the Purple Line, and which also includes participation in the company that will manage the operation and maintenance of the system for 30 years.
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