PORTO Metro has unveiled the design of its new 18 LRVs ordered from CRRC Tangshan in January 2020.
The vehicles features a grey and yellow livery along the side culminating in a “smile” at the front. CRRC beat Skoda and Siemens for the €49.6m contract, which includes five year’s maintenance.
The vehicles, dubbed CT as an abbreviation of CRRC Tram, will operate alongside the Eurotram (ET) and Tram-train (TT) fleets already operated by Porto Metro. The design was developed following an 11-month study conducted by designers and rolling stock experts.
“We wanted to keep our identity and our visual brand, but to take a leap forward, a new initiative, which is associated with a new expansion phase for Porto Metro,” says Ms Joana Barros, who coordinated the CT design team. “The reduction of the yellow colour makes it more dynamic, soft and modern, while the rounded lines bring us a greater sense of speed and movement. On the other hand, we worked on the front lighting and created a smile, which is compatible with the technical and regulatory requirements.”
Porto Metro says the LRV is aerodynamic and accessible, with seven double doors on each side compared with six on the ET and four on the TT.
The trains are due to be delivered in the second quarter of 2022, ahead of the opening of the 3.15km double-track light rail extension to the existing Line D (Yellow) and a new 3.1km underground Line G (Pink).
For detailed data on fleet orders from around the world, subscribe to IRJ Pro.
