New-generation “Moskva” metro train enters service on the Tagansko-Krasnopresnenskaya Line

Moscow Mayor Sergei Sobyanin launched the new-generation Moskva metro train that will operate on the Tagansko-Krasnopresnenskaya Line.

“This is a great day in the history of the Moscow Metro and in the Russian transport engineering industry. The new train, the world’s best in terms of some specifications and passenger-comfort levels, is hitting the tracks today. This train costs one and half times less than its foreign equivalents,” he noted.

The city has been preparing for this for a long time, Mr Sobyanin noted. Leading Russian engineering companies, as well as representatives of major rolling-stock manufacturers, took part in compiling the new train’s specifications.

“We had an extremely difficult goal to design the world’s best metro train that would be competitive in cost and specifications. Transmashholding developed this train which is an example of the Russian engineering sector’s impressive performance and its competitiveness in Russia and the world,” Mr Sobyanin added.

In 2010-2016, the city purchased over 1,600 new carriages under a programme to upgrade the metro’s rolling stock. This is more than the number of carriages purchased for the London Tube and the New York Subway. The metro started receiving Mk. 81-765/766/767 Moskva next-generation carriages in early 2017.

These trains are more comfortable, quieter and carry more passengers, Mr Sobyanin noted. They offer a smooth ride, consume less energy, and the corridor connection between carriages helps passengers save time.

“We decided to run the first trains on the Tagansko-Krasnopresnenskaya Line which is probably the most congested line. Over a million people use it every day. These wonderful and beautiful trains will completely replace the line’s current trains in the next few years,” Mr Sobyanin added.

These trains received their name after an online vote involving over 220,000 people on the Active Citizen website.

In 2014, the city and metro train manufacturer Metrovagonmash PLC, part of Transmashholding Ltd., signed a contract for the delivery of these new trains and train maintenance during their entire service life.

The company pledges to deliver and maintain these trains during for a period of 30 years. These new trains cost no more than their predecessors and 1.5 times less than foreign equivalents. The Moscow Metro’s train maintenance expenses will be reduced by 15 percent.

Mr Sobyanin thanked Transmashholding employees for their part in developing the new train, and he also thanked the metro workers who took part in developing the train and preparing it for service. Numerous cross-ties and tracks were replaced on the Tagansko-Krasnopresnenskaya Line. Its signals and various technical systems have also been upgraded.

Mayor Sobyanin rode the new train and spoke with metro passengers.

“I would like to thank the passengers who were also involved in designing the  technical specifications. I hope everyone will like these new carriages that will start running on this line and that have been named ‘Moskva’ by Active Citizen users,” he added.

Under the contracts, 912 carriages will be delivered in 2017-2020. In 2017-2018, the city will receive 264 carriages annually, plus 192 carriages annually in 2019-2020. Most of them will carry passengers on the Tagansko-Krasnopresnenskaya Line. This is one of the largest contracts in the history of global metro train construction.

Moskva trains will guarantee jobs and stable salaries for over 7,000 people at Metrovagonmash PLC in Mytishchi near Moscow and affiliated companies nationwide.

The comfortable, safe and energy-efficient Moskva train

In 2013, the Moscow Metro drafted technical standards for their next-generation rolling stock. This project involved leading Russian research and development agencies in transport engineering, including the National Research and Development Institute of Railway Transport, the National Research and Development Institute of Railway Hygiene and the Institute of Problems of Natural Monopolies. Various consultants, including representatives from major transit train manufacturers (Siemens, Bombardier, CAF, Alstom, Sinara Group, the Uralvagonmash Corporation and Transmasholding Ltd., also took part. In addition, developers asked the advice of train operators, passengers and people with disabilities. Over 200 changes were introduced in the carriage design to improve interiors and install a more ergonomic operator’s cab.

More room for passengers

Compared with the classic Yozh-type trains, this train carries 28 percent more people or up to 1,524 passengers.

The corridor connection helps passengers spread out all over the train and exit through the most convenient doors. The absence of separated carriages reduces the risk of people falling off station platforms in between carriages.

Standing in comfort

Designers also took care to install special soft wall protrusions for standing passengers to lean on.

Improved hand rails also help standing passengers, including people with bulky luggage and prams. A vertical railing has been installed in between the doors (where passengers accumulate) for the first time. The train has 30 new railings with warm grips.

Quick and comfortable boarding

Unlike previous models with 1.2-metre wide door openings, the Moskva train’s door openings are 15 percent wider (1.4 meres). This will help passengers board the train and get off more quickly, primarily during peak hours.

The slower-closing new doors are safer, and they will not squeeze passengers. Lights and sound signals will tell passengers that the doors are closing.

Fresh air and comfortable temperatures

The corridor connection helps the HVAC (heating, ventilation and air conditioning) system evenly distribute the air flow all over the train, basically eliminating non-ventilated areas. The carriages are also equipped with an advanced air filtration system that uses ultraviolet lamps inside special boxes along the ceiling.

Low noise levels

Noise levels inside the new trains have been reduced by almost 30 percent to no more than 70 decibels.

The train’s new trucks (wheel frame assembly), featuring noise-absorbing wheels for the first time, provide a smooth and quiet ride. The lighter carriages help reduce noise levels by reducing the load on the tracks.

Safety

Traffic safety has been enhanced by using a crash system, and rigid coupling is also used for the first time to prevent carriages from piling up on top of each other. Anti-skid systems, as well as automatic fire detection and extinguishing systems, are also stipulated for passenger compartments.

Interior and exterior wide-angle cameras with no blind areas will be used to monitor various aspects of the service. They will show the face of passengers addressing the train operator and the situation around him or her. If necessary, these images can be relayed to the metro’s situation centre.

Soft lighting

The train has LED lamps with adjustable hues. White lamps will shine in the mornings, to help people concentrate, and warmer and more relaxing yellow hues will shine in the evening.

Power consumption has been cut in half. To avoid temporarily blinding passengers, the train will automatically switch off the headlights when approaching a station.

Working in style

The operator’s cab features systems to control the operator’s alertness levels and intellectual support devices. Several Moscow Metro train operators helped develop the more ergonomic control panel layout. A self-diagnostic system collects, stores and displays data on the driver’s computer monitor.

A climate control system will keep cab temperatures cool in the summer; and the cabs are now 15 percent larger.

Know your route better

Train carriages are equipped with interactive touchscreens showing metro maps. In addition to the map, riders can plot their route to the destination station.

Wi-Fi and USB charging outlets

Mobile-device charging outlets have been installed for the first time. Free Wi-Fi will make commuting more interesting.

Seats for disabled people

Front-section carriages are designed for people with disabilities, a first for the Moscow Metro. These seats have special backs for wheelchair users, safety belts and a separate push-to-talk button to communicate with train operators.

Light and energy-efficient train

The Moskva train is 22 tonnes lighter than its predecessor and uses 35-40 percent less energy. Of its eight carriages in each train, two have no motors; this reduces weight, track wear rates and also cuts power consumption. These trains consume less energy thanks to unique regenerative braking systems.

No place for illegal joyriders

Illegal joyriders will be unable to hold on to these trains which lack any protruding surfaces. This will reduce the number of accidents, and trains will not be delayed very often.

Best in the world

The Moskva train, which was designed especially for the Moscow Metro, ranks among the world’s best trains in terms of specification, as well as passenger comfort and safety levels.

Moscow Metro train carriages

Tagansko-Krasnopresnenskaya Line: reducing congestion and boosting comfort levels

Today, the Tagansko-Krasnopresnenskaya Line (Purple Line) is the most congested line in the Moscow Metro system, with an average of 1.2 million passengers each weekday. The Circle Line handles 722,000 passengers daily.

In 2013-2015, four new stations, Spartak, Lermontovsky Prospekt, Zhulebino and Kotelniki, were opened on this line. Three of them are located in the densely populated Vykhino-Zhulebino, Kotelniki and Lyubertsy districts.

The new Moskva trains operating on this line will carry many more passengers with greater comfort.

Throughout 2017, the line will receive 33 next-generation trains with 264 carriages for carrying an additional 145,000 passengers daily.

The Tagansko-Krasnopresnenskaya Line’s rolling stock will be renewed completely by late 2020.

In 2014-2016, the city improved pedestrian underpasses and upgraded entrances at the following 12 stations on the Tagansko-Krasnopresnenskaya Line: Barrikadnaya, Planernaya, Skhodnenskaya, Tushinskaya, Oktyabrskoye Polye, Begovaya, Kuznetsky Most, Kitai-Gorod, Proletarskaya, Tekstilshchiki, Kuzminki and Vykhino.

Station-entrance walls, ceilings, ticket offices were renovated, and retail outlets established. The façades of the Planernaya, Barrikadnaya and Kuznetsky Most stations were also improved, and their historical image was restored.

The Puskinskaya, Taganskaya and Ryazansky Prospekt stations are to be upgraded during the second stage of the improvement and reconstruction programme.

The passenger infrastructure in station entrances and pedestrian underpasses will meet the current requirements at 19 (or 83 percent) of the Tagansko-Krasnopresnenskaya Line’s 23 stations.

Work is now underway to build the new parallel Kozhukhovskaya Line that will reduce congestion on the Tagansko-Krasnopresnenskaya Line.

New carriages for the Moscow Metro

The city has been upgrading metro trains since 2010. The Moscow Metro has purchased 1,651 carriages by late 2016 or about 40 percent of the total (4,200-4,300).

The new trains are running on eight lines, including the Circle Line, the Arbatsko-Pokrovskaya, Serpukhovsko-Timiryazevskaya, Kalininskaya, Filyovskaya, Lyublinskaya, Butovskaya and Tagansko-Krasnopresnenskaya lines.

Of the total, 987 new carriages were purchased under the traditional plan, that is train maintenance carried out by the metro.

Since 2014, 664 carriages have been purchased under new service-life contracts.

In February 2017, the metro started receiving new-generation Moskva trains under the service-life contracts. In all, 912 Moskva train carriages are to be delivered by 2020.

The city is implementing one of the most ambitious train renovation programmes in the world. In 2010-2015, the London Tube received 1,276 carriages. New Delhi, Paris and Hong Kong received 788, 310 and 176 metro-train carriages each. And the New York Subway received 131 carriages.