Skip to main content

Bombardier to supply new propulsion technology to London Underground

Rail technology supplier Bombardier Transportation has been awarded a contract by London Underground to supply new motors and traction control equipment for its fleet of Central line trains. This contract, which includes ongoing maintenance support, will run until 2024 and is valued by Bombardier Transportation at approximately US$143.7 million (£112.1 million). Bombardier's re-traction project is part of London Underground's larger Central Line Improvement Programme (which aims to bring a number of pas
August 29, 2017 Read time: 2 mins

Rail technology supplier 513 Bombardier Transportation has been awarded a contract by London Underground to supply new motors and traction control equipment for its fleet of Central line trains. This contract, which includes ongoing maintenance support, will run until 2024 and is valued by Bombardier Transportation at approximately US$143.7 million (£112.1 million).

Bombardier's re-traction project is part of London Underground's larger Central Line Improvement Programme (which aims to bring a number of passenger-focussed improvements and is expected to reduce customer-affecting failures on the Central line fleet.

For the programme, Bombardier will replace the direct current (DC) traction motors on Central line trains with the latest MITRAC alternating current (AC) traction systems and MITRAC traction control equipment. The Central Line '92 tube stock are the last London Underground trains to use DC traction motors, and MITRAC will bring benefits by reducing energy consumption while improving fleet reliability and performance. In total, Bombardier will supply new motors and traction control equipment for 85 eight-car Central Line trains (680 cars in total).

Related Content

  • September 23, 2014
    Idaho adds human dimension to winter savings
    Idaho leverages the increased capability and reliability of its road weather sensor network to reduce costs and prevent accidents. Weather-related accidents can form a significant chunk of an authorities’ annual road casualty statistics. While authorities cannot control the weather, the technology exists to monitor the road conditions and react with warnings to motorists and the treatment of icy or snow-covered roads. However, with all capital expenditure now placed under the microscope of public scrutiny,
  • January 21, 2016
    London joining forces with European cities to trial smart technology
    Using the River Thames to heat homes, testing electric bikes and trialling state-of-the-art smart parking bays are just some of the innovative projects to be put to the test in London as part of a Europe-wide technology drive. London is joining forces with cities across Europe in a US$27 million project that will demonstrate how innovative uses of technology can improve the lives of their residents. The Mayor of London, Boris Johnson, in partnership with the Royal Borough of Greenwich has been chosen to
  • August 31, 2021
    Microgrids & the new power generation
    Public transportation agencies are turning to microgrids to provide critical resilience in the event of local and regional power interruptions. Gordon Feller looks at projects in Maryland, New Jersey and Massachusetts
  • October 10, 2012
    Wireless technology aids city-wide traffic management
    An extensive hybrid communications network in the County of Los Angeles is proving the capability and benefits of modern wireless technology for traffic management across wide areas. Wireless communications technology has found a welcoming test bed for use in traffic management systems, in the County of Los Angeles. The county has long running programmes synchronizing and monitoring traffic signals over large areas. In the process, combined with installation of advanced traffic management systems (ATMS), th