posted on 31st Jan 2025 16:48
Siemens Mobility, in collaboration with its Parklife Metro consortium partners, has revealed a realistic model of a car for the Sydney Metro - Western Sydney Airport line. Presenting the mockup marks an important milestone in the turnkey project and offers a preview of the future travel experience once the state-of-the-art metro system is operational in Greater Western Sydney.
Léon Soulier, CEO Turnkey Business Unit at Siemens Mobility, said: "The high-fidelity mock-up for the Sydney Metro - Western Sydney Airport turnkey project has arrived in Australia and marks another milestone for us. We are excited about our turnkey project in Sydney stretching 23 km from St. Mary's to the new airport and Bradfield City Center. This new line will support 14,000 jobs during construction, fueling growth for both New South Wales and the national economy.”
The mock-up shows the interior of the trains which will offer passengers a comfortable and pleasant travel experience. Large windows provide expansive views of Western Sydney. The trains offer flexible seating and standing options, as well as additional handrails and grips for secure holding during the journey. The Sydney Metro train features spacious interiors with large multifunctional areas for wheelchairs. The wide double-leaf doors ensure quick boarding and alighting of passengers.
The mock-up offered all involved parties, operator and manufacturer alike, the opportunity to evaluate and finalize aspects of the train like the interior lighting, emergency features, and passenger information display systems. It helped engineers and designers validate the final design choices, ensuring that the layout, materials, and ergonomics met the intended specifications. This full-size prototype provided a valuable opportunity for thorough testing and customer feedback before the final trains commenced manufacturing.
As part of the mockup presentation, the upholstery design has been revealed to the public. These seats showcase unique artwork that pays homage to the Cumberland Plain, the area where the upcoming metro line will be located. The artwork incorporates elements such as Ngurra (country) and Badu (water), while the grey and blue patterns and colors of the general seats represent the night sky. Additionally, the priority seats in yellow depict daytime scenes of meeting places near waterholes adorned with fields of wattle flowers.
Turnkey project overview
Siemens Mobility has been awarded a turnkey contract to deliver a metro system for the Sydney Metro – Western Sydney Airport project in 2022, representing Australia's first turnkey rail project and public-private partnership. The project aims to establish a 23 km metro line connecting the new Western Sydney International Airport with the Bradfield City Center. The contract includes the delivery and commissioning of twelve fully automated, driverless metro trains, as well as digital rail infrastructure such as signaling, electrification, telecoms, platform screen doors, and a depot.
Siemens Mobility will also implement Railigent X, the Mobility Application Suite for digital services, to enhance operational reliability and availability. They will be responsible for a 15-year maintenance contract, utilizing digital asset management applications. Siemens Mobility is part of the Parklife Metro consortium, which includes partners with international infrastructure project experience. The Siemens Mobility portion of the contract is valued at 900 million EUR.