Siemens awarded $17.2 million MARTA car contract

Siemens Industry, Inc., has been awarded a $17.2 million contract from Metropolitan Atlanta Rapid Transit Authority (MARTA), on behalf of the City of Atlanta and the Atlanta Downtown Improvement District, to provide Atlanta with four new streetcars. The first car is expected to be delivered in September 2012 with revenue service beginning in early 2013. These will be the first streetcars in Atlanta since 1949 and will mark Siemens entry into the streetcar market in the United States.

The streetcars will be built at Siemens’ railcar and locomotive plant
in Sacramento, Calif., an operation powered primarily by two megawatts
of solar energy. Additionally, major components including the propulsion
system will be built at Siemens manufacturing facility in the
metro-Atlanta suburb of Alpharetta.

Streetcars are part of the
first phase of Atlanta’s project to create a comprehensive, regional
streetcar and light rail transit system. The streetcars will initially
run in a loop, bridging the gap between east and west downtown that was
formed by the development of the I-75/85 connector. The new system will
provide connectivity for the core of downtown Atlanta, improving
accessibility to key business destinations and event venues. The system
will also serve as the catalyst for transit-oriented development within
the loop.