Bangkok Mass Transit System Public Company Limited (BTSC) has placed a EUR42 million order with Siemens Mobility for another 35 trailer cars for the Thai capital’s elevated rapid transit system, BTS Skytrain. Train service on the Sukhumvit Line is to start gradually from the end of 2012. In addition, the 5.25-kilometer extension of this line is to be electrified by Siemens under the terms of an order placed by Italian-Thai Development Public Company Limited (ITD), Thailand’s biggest building contractor.
“From metro to elevated railway to airport link, Bangkok is a showcase for our innovative, integrated transportation concepts aimed at solving the mobility problems of the world’s rapidly growing urban centers,” said Hans-Joerg Grundmann, CEO of Siemens Mobility.The elevated BTS Skytrain was the first rapid transit system to be built in the capital of Thailand and, since its opening in 1999, has had a major hand in reducing the flow of automobiles in the city. Whereas traffic barely makes any headway on the congested streets, the Skytrain units built by Siemens can move at speeds of up to 80 kilometers an hour on a clear track 12 to 30 meters above the pavement. The rapid transit system consists of the two Sukhumvit and Silom Lines, a total of 25 stations and approximately 28 kilometers of track. Read More
