Siemens to equip new metro line in Santo Domingo

Siemens is set to supply the entire electrification and rail automation equipment for the new metro line in Santo Domingo, the capital of the Dominican Republic. Siemens received a corresponding order as member of a consortium including the French company, Thales, from the government transport authority Oficina para la Reorganización del Transporte (OPRET). Siemens' share of the order is worth approximately about $94 million. The order also includes a maintenance contract for the period of three years. The new Line 2 will be about 11 miles long and serve 20 metro stations. It will be built in two phases, with the first 7.4-mile stage of construction due for completion by the end of 2012. The plans for the second phase of this metro line project will be finalized by the operator OPRET in the course of next year. Santo Domingo's first metro line opened as recently as the end of January 2009. In that case, Siemens Mobility was in charge of the system integration and project management and also responsible for supplying the traction power supply system along with the signaling and control equipment. Line 2 is another step toward comprehensive modernization of the island's transportation systems and reducing the increasing number of privately operated motor vehicles. Running underground over its entire length, it will link the city center with municipal districts in the east and west.