18.01.16
Delayed ITT launched for 250 New Tube for London trains
London Underground has officially launched the delayed invitation to tender (ITT) for the design and build of the New Tube for London trains, set to serve the Piccadilly, Waterloo & City, Bakerloo and Central lines by the early 2020s.
The ITT for the order – expected to cost between £1bn to £2.5bn – was initially pencilled for February of last year, but this was rescheduled to December in TfL’s Budget for 2015-16. It then slipped by a further month, to today.
The five pre-qualified manufacturers – Alstom, Bombardier, CAF, Hitachi and Siemens – are now able to proceed to the next stage of the procurement process.
The 250-train fleet will feature air-conditioned, walk-through carriages capable of offering faster, more frequent and more reliable journeys on the deep-level lines. It will also increase capacity and comfort across the service while maximising accessibility and safety through widened doors.
This will particularly relevant on the Piccadilly line, where capacity will be boosted by 60% - the equivalent of up t0 21,000 passengers per hour – but other lines’ capacity will increase by 25-35% as well.
There will be 100 new trains on the Piccadilly line, 10 on Waterloo & City, 40 on Bakerloo and another 100 along the Central line.
Nick Brown, LU’s managing director, said: “Today’s invitation to train manufacturers to submit bids for the design and build of the New Tube is a significant step forward. Londoners have already seen huge improvements to the Tube network, but to meet the needs of our rapidly growing population we must continue to invest in and improve our services.
“More people are using the Underground than at any point in its 153-year history. The New Tube for London will transform the journeys of millions of customers, providing trains fit for a world city for the next five decades.”
Bidding companies must return their proposals in the summer, with a contract to build the new trains expected to be awarded in autumn 2017.
Michael Flynn, head of delivery and integration at Transport for London, also recently confirmed that CH2M has been awarded the partner contract for the programme, with PwC as subcontractor.
“Their role will be to support us with cost efficiencies, the early integration of the project and prepare us for taking the New Tube for London forward from its feasibility phase,” he said.