Alstom Wins Quebec City LRV Contract
Written by Marybeth Luczak, Executive Editor
Quebec City’s 12-mile (19.3-kilometer) light rail line is slated to begin operating in 2028 with 34 Alstom-built low-floor LRVs. (Rendering of Boulevard Laurier, Courtesy of Alstom, Copyright Ville de Québec)
Quebec City has awarded Alstom an approximately C$1.34 billion contract to design, build and maintain for 30 years a fleet of 34 Citadis vehicles for its light rail project.
The manufacturer was announced as the preferred bidder last month.
Quebec City’s new 12-mile (19.3-kilometer) line is slated to open in 2028. More than 75% of it will be segregated from road traffic, but with the light rail vehicles (LRVs) having priority at road junctions. A 1.1-mile (1.8-kilometer) segment will operate in a tunnel under the city center.
Alstom on April 25 reported that the electric low-floor LRVs will be adapted to the climatic and topographical conditions of Quebec City. Additionally, they will be developed by its engineers in Saint-Bruno-de-Montarville—Alstom’s Americas’ headquarters on the south shore of Montreal—and assembled at the former Bombardier Transportation plant in La Pocatière, Quebec. Alstom’s contract includes an option for a maximum of five LRVs plus maintenance.
“We are honored by the trust placed in us by the administration and elected representatives of Quebec City, and are committed to working in partnership with the city to offer a high quality and reliable product, a solution designed and assembled by our teams in Quebec, serving Quebec,” said Michael Keroullé, who assumed the position of President of Alstom Americas Region in 2021, following the company’s acquisition of Bombardier Transportation.
