The new cars for SkyTrain, British Columbia’s main public transportation system in Metro Vancouver, were unveiled at Vancouver’s Chinatown-Stadium Station on July 10th.
The newly introduced next-generation vehicle, the Mark V, is said to be able to carry 25 percent more passengers than previous vehicles.
The five-car trains will operate on the Expo and Millennium Lines, as well as on the upcoming Broadway Subway and Surrey-Langley SkyTrain projects.
TransLink, which manages and operates the SkyTrain, announced that it has purchased 235 cars (47 units), the largest order to date, which will be introduced gradually by 2029.
The Mark 5 was developed by Alstom, a major French rail vehicle manufacturer. In 2021, Alstom acquired the former Bombardier Transportation, the rail vehicle division of Canadian transportation equipment manufacturer Bombardier (Quebec).
According to TransLink, the Mark 5 was manufactured at Alstom’s factory in La Pocatière, Quebec, and the test run was carried out in Kingston, Ontario, and then transported overland to Vancouver, emphasizing that it is “Made in Canada.