UAE: DACC, the operator of Dubai’s airports, has awarded a contract for the design and supply of rolling stock following a tender won by a consortium of the Japanese manufacturer and Indian L&T Construction.
The 50 km system, with 14 stations, will open alongside a new phase of Al Maktoum International Airport, making it the longest automated people mover network at any airport in the world.
Mitsubishi Heavy Industries will supply 165 driverless, rubber-tyred APM vehicles along with the signalling system. L&T will handle overall design and construction of the guideway, electrification, platform screen doors and other subsystems. Once the system opens, operation and maintenance will pass to MHI-MESC, Mitsubishi’s local subsidiary in Dubai.
Diagram of the future automated transport system at Dubai’s airport. Source: DACC
The transport complex is due for completion by December 2031, ahead of the new airport phase’s opening in 2032. By then, Al Maktoum is expected to become the world’s largest airport, with capacity for up to 260 mln passengers a year. Around $35 bln is earmarked for the airport’s overall development.
MEED reports that Alstom of France, CRRC of China and Hitachi Rail of Japan also bid for the DACC contract. Neither the value of the winning deal nor the other bidders’ proposals have been disclosed.
Mitsubishi has built rubber-tyred trains since the early 2000s. Its driverless Crystal Mover vehicles already run at several airports in the US and Asia, including Dubai International Airport, and provide rapid transit in Singapore (main image). Automated trains from its Urbanismo range serve conurbations around major Japanese cities.
Last year, Mitsubishi unveiled a new platform, Prismo, which uses a central guide rail, runs on power from an onboard energy store, and recharges rapidly at stations. The manufacturer says the new trains will use 10% less energy, though no orders have yet been announced.
