Milestones of urban mobility
1881 Berlin: the world’s first electric tram
After Werner von Siemens presented his first electric locomotive at the Berlin Trade Show in 1879 and attracted a lot of attention, he then tried to obtain a concession for an elevated electric railway in Berlin. Concerns about falling cars and protests by residents hindered the project. In 1881, he managed to use a line in Gross Lichterfelde that connected the Lichterfelde station to the military academy. The two single-motor cars were made by Siemens & Halske, ran on direct current from the two tracks, and remained in operation until 1893. The system changed around 1890, when the traction voltage was raised to 500 V and was supplied by the overhead line. The meter-gauge “Electric Railway in Lichterfelde” was the world’s first electrically operated tram. The line was extended several times and sold in 1905. From 1921 to 1930, it was part of the tram network of greater Berlin.
1896 Budapest: the first subway on the European continent
For the Hungarian Millennium of 1896, the booming capital showcased its own capabilities, including the first subway on the European continent. Only London had been operating an electric subway since 1890. On December 29, 1894, Siemens & Halske started building the 2.68-kilometer line using the open-trench, cut-and-cover method of tunnel construction. The opening ceremony for the subway took place on May 2, 1896. Schlick & Nicholson of Budapest manufactured 20 railcars, and Siemens & Halske provided the electrical equipment. Supplied with modernized bogies at the end of the 1950s, the cars remained in operation until 1973. The state-of-the-art Millennium Underground is still part of the Budapest subway network. In 2002, what is now the M1 line was included in the World Heritage List along with Andrássy Avenue under which it runs. Three cars are on display at the Millennium Underground Museum in Budapest, and car 12 can be viewed at the Hannover Tramway Museum.
1902 Berlin: the first German elevated and underground railway
Werner von Siemens already had the idea for an elevated railway for the rapidly growing city of Berlin in 1867. But it wasn’t until March 1896 that Siemens & Halske were permitted to build and operate an elevated railway from Warschauer Brücke to Nollendorfplatz. Unfortunately, the company’s founder was unable to enjoy his success, which came four years after his death. To finance this major project, Siemens & Halske and the Deutsche Bank together founded the Gesellschaft für elektrische Hoch- und Untergrundbahnen in April 1897 in Berlin. Two track sections were opened in 1902 from Warschauer Brücke to Potsdamer Platz, as was a branch from the Zoologischer Garten to Gleisdreieck. This was the beginning of a new era in transportation technology for the German capital. In 1902, the elevated railway company transported almost 19 million passengers, and the numbers increased to 29 million in 1903. By the fall of 1913, the Berlin subway network was more than 35 kilometers long. Today the network of the Berlin metro has 173 stations and 146 kilometers of track and is constantly being expanded.
1930 Athens: construction of a subway under the city center
Before the First World War, Athens and Piraeus had a population of roughly 200,000. This grew to over one million inhabitants during the 1920s, when traffic conditions demanded a dramatic improvement and a new transportation infrastructure. The Athens subway network, which had until then consisted of only one line to Piraeus, began expansions in 1925. In order to create a direct north-south connection between the Piraeus train and the Kifissia line, and to replace the steam tram that operated there, the Hellenic Electric Railways Company decided in 1927 to build a two-track underground line from Omonia Square to the Attiki station. All the structural work was transferred to a working group that included Siemens-Bauunion as general contractor, Grün & Bilfinger, and two Greek companies. After just three years of construction, the Omonia Square – Attika line was inaugurated in 1930.
1934 Buenos Aires: subway expansion
After the Compañía de Tranvías Anglo Argentina obtained the concession in 1909 and built the route, the first subway line was inaugurated on December 1, 1913. It was the first subway in Latin America and in the entire southern hemisphere. Just one year earlier in 1912, Lacroze Hermanos had received a concession for the B subway line, which was inaugurated on October 17, 1930. In 1933, the Compañía Hispano-Argentina de Obras Públicas y Finanzas (CHADOPYF) began building the remaining lines with the participation of various Siemens companies: The tunnel work was done by Siemens-Bauunion in a working group with Grün & Bilfinger, the signaling system was implemented by Vereinigte Eisenbahn-Signalwerke, and Siemens-Schuckertwerke supplied the contact lines and cars. The train design was largely based on vehicles from Berlin’s Gesundbrunnen – Neukölln subway line.
1952 Athens: major contract, new routes and vehicles
In 1952, Siemens was awarded one of its first major contracts of the postwar period in Greece. The company supplied the electrical equipment for twelve rail cars for the Piraeus – Athens subway. Subsequent orders increased the number of trains with electrical equipment from Siemens to over 35. In 1991, a consortium was commissioned to implement subway lines 2 and 3, with Siemens managing the entire project and supplying the trains. In 1997, ISAP (Athens – Piraeus Electric Railways) ordered 40 three-part metro trains equipped with the latest three-phase drive technology. These trains later conveyed visitors from around the world to the competition sites at the 2004 Olympics.
1967 Munich: subway trains and technical innovations
The groundbreaking ceremony for the Munich subway was held on February 1, 1965. In the summer of 1967, the first tests were conducted on the line between Alte Heide and Studentenstadt using prototypes of the A1-type car. On October 19, 1971, the Munich subway began passenger service on the twelve-kilometer U6 line between Kieferngarten and Goetheplatz. From 1970 to 1983, Munich received 193 A2-type two-car units. Type B cars were deployed in 1980. In 1986, 70 subway cars were ordered for which Siemens supplied all the electrical equipment with energy-saving, jerk-free three-phase technology. Type C cars have been in use since 2002. In 2010, Siemens received an order from Stadtwerke München (SWM: Munich City Utilities) for the delivery of 21 C2-type six-part subway trains with an option for an additional 46 trains. In 2012, Siemens premiered the Syntegra bogie for passenger service in Munich. The new design integrated traction, bogie, and braking technology into an energy-saving unit that’s unique around the world.
1972 Nuremberg: the subway and Germany’s first driverless train
The Nuremberg subway was opened on March 1, 1972. Between 1970 and 1982, Siemens delivered a total of 64 DT1-type cars. In 1978, eight of the two-car units were equipped with three-phase drives that enabled regenerative braking. The goal of the RUBIN project was to introduce driverless operation on the new U3 line. In preparation for automatic operation, 32 DT3-type driverless subway trains developed by Siemens Mobility, a control center, a special train protection system, trackside equipment, and platform security systems were implemented. Driverless operation began on the U3 line on June 14, 2008. In 2009, it was extended to the U2 line and permitted mixed operation with trains controlled by drivers. In November 2015, Siemens received an order for 21 G1-type four-part trains that replaced the old DT1s. The order included options for additional vehicles.
1974 Buenos Aires: new trains for the subway
In 1974, Siemens delivered 20 four-axle vehicles of steel construction with powered bogies and resistive braking to Subterráneos de Buenos Aires (SBA) for its B line. In 1980/81, the customer was supplied with 20 additional two-car units. In 1988, 25 vehicles with the Simatic-S5 (Sitrac) control system were provided for the A, C, D, and E lines. The modernized H line resumed operation in 2016 and was the first line in the Argentinian capital to be equipped with the radio-based Trainguard MT automatic train control system from Siemens.
1977 Edmonton/Calgary: light rail vehicles based on the Frankfurt model deployed in Canada
Between 1977 and 1982, the Canadian city of Edmonton in the Province of Alberta ordered a total of 37 U2-type articulated multiple units that were developed by DUEWAG and Siemens in collaboration with Stadtwerke Frankfurt am Main. Between 2009 and 2013, Edmonton Light Rail Transit took delivery of 57 SD-160-type trains, a further development of the U2 for North American light rail. The city of Calgary ordered 27 U2-type cars in 1978, and in 1981 Calgary Transit ordered an additional 38 vehicles to expand its 12-kilometer light rail network. From 2010 to 2012, 38 SD-160-type six-axle articulated multiple units were added. In 2013, over 300,000 passengers were using the network daily, forcing Calgary Transit to again add to its rolling stock. In 2013, the company ordered 63 new S200 high-floor light rail vehicles from Siemens that were modified to meet the customer’s requirements. The cars have been manufactured in Sacramento, California since 2016 and are designed for Alberta’s typical temperature range of -30° to +30° Celsius.
1989 Shanghai: first metro lines and high-performance trains
From the start of construction on the first metro line in 1989 until the Pearl Line was established in 2002, Siemens served as a project partner for vehicles, operating technology, telecommunication, and miscellaneous infrastructure projects. For lines 1 and 2, which were the first to enter operation in 1993 and 2000, Siemens was in charge of project execution. The turnkey projects included delivery of 53 six-car trains plus signaling technology, power supply systems, and the contact line. With their 1,860 passenger capacity per unit, the 28 six-part trains ordered for the Pearl Line’s phase 2 in March 2002 set the standard for a high-performance metro. The vehicle concept incorporated the customer’s requirements and used proven components to guarantee high vehicle availability along with reduced maintenance and repair costs. The aluminum car bodies were designed for a 35-year service life.
1996 San Juan: major contract for a turnkey mass transit system
In 1996, Siemens was commissioned to build a turnkey mass transit system in San Juan, Puerto Rico. The Tren Urbano was intended to serve as a model for additional projects in the U.S. The project’s total volume was DM 1.8 million, making it the largest single order that Siemens’ Transportation Technology division had ever received from the U.S. In addition to lead management, Siemens was also responsible for the planning, delivery, assembly, commissioning, operation, and maintenance of the overall system. This included, among other things, vehicle production, all the electrical and mechanical equipment, and the construction of the track, workshops and depots, and two railway stations. The 17.2-kilometer line traversing San Juan included both elevated and underground sections. In 1998 a follow-up order was received that increased the number of vehicles to be delivered from 64 to 74. Passenger service began at the end of 2004.
1999 Bangkok: elevated railway, metro lines, and long-term maintenance
A consortium headed by Siemens was responsible for building two Skytrain lines totaling 22 kilometers that have been serving 650,000 passengers a day since 1999. The major contract worth over DM 2.2 billion from the Bangkok Transit System Corporation also included the delivery of 35 three-part, Modular Metro-type trains. An additional 35 cars were ordered in 2010. In 2002, Siemens was awarded the contract to supply equipment for Bangkok’s first subway. The order included 19 three-part metro trains, the infrastructure, project management, and a ten-year maintenance contract for the railway system. The Blue Line was 20 kilometers long with 18 stations. In May 2016, the Bangkok Mass Transit System Public Company placed an order with a consortium comprised of Siemens and the Turkish manufacturer Bozankaya for the delivery of 22 four-part trains for the Green Line. Siemens will maintain the trains for 16 years. In May 2016, Siemens received an order for 22 four-part trains that were assembled by Bozankaya.
2003 Oslo: new subway trains for the capital
In September 2003, Siemens was awarded the contract to supply 33 new three-part trains with aluminum car bodies for the Norwegian capital of Oslo. A first option for 30 additional vehicles was exercised in September 2005, and a second option for another 20 vehicles was exercised in September 2008. These were followed by a third and final option for 32 trains in December 2010. The three-car trains in the MX-3000 series were manufactured in Vienna and began passenger service in Oslo in 2007.
2007 Paris: fully automatic metro system for the airport
In April 2007, a fully automatic mass transit system from Siemens known as the Véhicule automatique léger (Val = light automatic vehicle) was inaugurated at the Roissy-Charles de Gaulle airport in Paris. Covering a distance of 3.3 kilometers and with five stops, the CDGVAL connects terminals 1, 2, and 3. During peak periods, the Val trains operate at four-minute intervals. Running on rubber tires, the Val at the Charles de Gaulle airport protects the environment and the climate: By eliminating a large proportion of shuttle buses, it saves 750 tons of diesel fuel per year. It also reduces nitrous oxide emissions by almost 15 tons and CO2 emissions by almost 2,500 tons per year.
Friedhelm Weidelich