Saudi Riyadh Metro Orders an Additional €460 Million Worth of Driverless Trains

en.Wedoany.com Reported - On September 28, Alstom signed a contract worth approximately €460 million with the Royal Commission for Riyadh City (RCRC) to supply additional driverless metro trains for Lines 3, 4, and 6 of the Riyadh Metro in Saudi Arabia, and to handle the system integration of the new vehicles with the existing line infrastructure. The new vehicles will expand the existing fleet and be incorporated into the operation and maintenance contracts for Lines 3, 4, and 6 that Alstom is already executing. Alstom did not disclose the specific number of additional trains this time.

The new vehicles will continue to use Alstom's Metropolis driverless metro platform and be integrated with the existing Urbalis CBTC train control system. Line 4 covered by the contract is the Yellow Line of the Riyadh Metro, which connects areas including King Khalid International Airport and will serve passenger flows related to the 2030 Riyadh Expo. Once the additional vehicles are put into operation, they will expand the line's peak-hour capacity by increasing train frequency.

Alstom had previously delivered 116 driverless trains to the Riyadh Metro. This contract is a follow-up procurement based on the existing vehicles and signaling system. Since the Riyadh Metro began passenger service at the end of 2024, cumulative ridership has exceeded 100 million trips. The vehicles covered by the new order will be directly connected to the existing fully automated operation network, without the need to build a separate vehicle system.

The order amount will be included in Alstom's order intake for the second quarter of fiscal year 2026/2027. According to the company's disclosure, the contract value is approximately US$585.5 million. In addition to vehicle supply, Alstom is also responsible for the interface between the new trains and the existing lines, CBTC signaling system, and operation and maintenance system. The contract corresponds to a complete execution chain of "vehicle supply—system integration—subsequent maintenance."