French train builder Alstom will team up with Bombardier to supply 13 more DT5 units to HOCHBAHN.
HOCHBAHN’s insanely-charismatic DT5 first hit the rails on the Hamburg Metro system in 2012, replacing the earlier DT2 and DT-3E models primarily on U-Bahn lines U3 and U4.
The three-car sets are Hamburg’s first ever air-conditioned ‘walkthrough’ metro trains, featuring open corridor connections between the cars. They’re run in pairs on line U3, where the platforms are shorter, and in sets of three on other lines.
Outside, they feature a striking livery of bare metal with bright red ends, and…just look at those super-pimped-up LED lights. The DT5 manages to look futuristic, clean, crisp, classical – and yet, like it might suddenly become self-aware and rise up from the rails to rip your head off – all at the same time.
Inside, the DT5 features impressive tech, some of it rarely seen up until now on urban metro systems – including at-seat USB power ports. For the first time, the DT5s’ doors are automated, so that they close automatically when there are no passengers in the vicinity.
The clean, crisp theme continues inside too – with these achingly stunning, yet incredibly simple backlit bulkheads propping up the driving cabs at each end of the train.
The new order
Alstom will supply an additional 13 DT5 sets to HOCHBAHN, with support from Bombardier, who will supply electrical and traction equipment, passenger info systems and vehicle control technology. They’ll be built at Alstom’s facility in Salzgitter, Germany.
“This additional contract clearly demonstrates that our customer and their passengers in Hamburg are highly satisfied with our product. This brings the total number of ordered DT5 metros to 131. Clearly, we are proud to be pursuing such long-standing cooperation with HOCHBAHN,” said Jörg Nikutta, Managing Director of Alstom in Germany & Austria.
The new trains are scheduled to join their older siblings in December 2020 – see more about the DT5 in this video, by HOCHBAHN.
Have you sampled HOCHBAHN’s DT5 yet? What did you think? Let us know in the comments below, or tweet us – @transportdsn.
Image credits: Matthew Black on Flickr, HOCHBAHN and Transport Designed (that’s us!) on Instagram.
