Mumbai, Nov. 13 -- Alstom has commenced manufacturing 96 Metropolis driverless metro cars for Chennai Metro Phase II at its Sri City facility in Andhra Pradesh. The production forms part of a €135 million contract awarded by Chennai Metro Rail Limited (CMRL) in 2025, covering the design and manufacture of 32 three-car trainsets and 15 years of comprehensive maintenance following the warranty period.
Chennai Metro Phase II spans approximately 119 km across three corridors and associated inter-corridor sections, comprising more than 76 km of elevated tracks and 43 km of underground routes.
Under the Make in India initiative, the driverless trains are designed at Alstom's engineering centre in Bengaluru and manufactured at its Sri City facility. The new trainsets will support the expansion of Chennai's metro network and improve urban connectivity.
Olivier Loison, Managing Director, Alstom India, said the production milestone reinforces the company's long-standing partnership with CMRL, which began with Chennai's first metro rail project. He highlighted that the completion of 108 metro cars for Corridor 4 and the commencement of additional trainset manufacturing demonstrate Alstom's continued commitment to Chennai's urban mobility development.
Designed for Grade of Automation 4 (GoA4) fully driverless operations, the Metropolis trains will operate at speeds of up to 80 km/h. Each three-car trainset can accommodate approximately 900 passengers and features regenerative braking, advanced cybersecurity systems, air conditioning, CCTV surveillance, real-time passenger information displays and dedicated spaces for women and differently abled commuters.
The manufacturing announcement follows Alstom's completion of deliveries of 36 Metropolis trainsets, comprising 108 cars, for Chennai Metro Phase II's Corridor 4 in October 2026. The 26 km corridor connects Poonamallee Bypass to Light House through 28 stations, including 18 elevated and 10 underground stations.
The earlier Corridor 4 contract, valued at €102 million and awarded in 2023, included train design, manufacturing, testing, commissioning and personnel training.
Alstom's association with Chennai Metro dates back to 2010. The company has supplied 208 metro cars for Phase I and, in consortium with Larsen & Toubro, executed 86 track kilometres of track works across Corridors I and II.
With metro train deliveries across Delhi, Chennai, Lucknow, Kochi, Mumbai, Pune, Agra-Kanpur and Indore-Bhopal, Alstom continues to strengthen its position in India's urban rail sector. The latest manufacturing programme further supports domestic railway production and the expansion of automated, energy-efficient metro transportation infrastructure.
Published by HT Digital Content Services with permission from Construction World.