Made in WA: METRONET railcars to be proudly built in WA

Made in WA: METRONET railcars to be proudly built in WA

Sunday, 18 August 2019

•​McGowan Government election commitment to bring railcar manufacturing back to WA takes a major step forward
•Alstom today announced as the preferred proponent to build 246 new METRONET railcars and a manufacturing and assembly plant in Bellevue
•50 per cent of the railcars must be made in WA, creating more than 200 direct and long-term jobs, and hundreds of additional indirect jobs
•Previously only two per cent of the work was carried out in WA
•Locally WA made trains to run on locally WA built METRONET train lines

The McGowan Labor Government will build new METRONET railcars locally, helping stimulate the local economy and creating hundreds of new, quality jobs.

World-class railcar manufacturer, Alstom, has today been announced as the preferred proponent to build 246 new C-series railcars, six cars to replace the existing Australind service and a manufacturing and assembly plant in Bellevue.

As part of the project, Alstom will establish a base in Western Australia at the 12,000m2 plant near Midland, where railcar maintenance will also be carried out for the next 30 years.

Under the policy, which was taken to the 2017 election, a new 50 per cent local content target has been set to ensure jobs are maximised in Western Australia.

Since the Midland Railway Workshops were closed in 1994, new trains added to the network were predominately built in Queensland, with only two per cent of the work completed in WA.

Construction on the first stage of the Bellevue plant is expected to start next year and be completed in 2021, creating new jobs in itself. Meanwhile, construction of the following stages, including the new railcar depot and diesel facility will continue to 2023.

Budgeted at $1.6 billion over ten years, the project will deliver 246 new railcars over the next decade (102 for the METRONET rail expansion and 144 to replace the ageing A-Series) - the biggest order of railcars in the State's history.

Once the contract is finalised, expected to be later this year, the successful proponent will also be responsible for maintaining the fleet of rail cars for the next 30 years.

From 2022 the new trains will run on the Mandurah and Joondalup Lines initially, as these have the highest patronage demand, highest service frequency and the highest line speed.

While the final design and features of the railcars are still to be finalised, the six-car trains will carry about 1200 passengers and have an operational life of 35 years.

Additional and wider than normal passenger doors will make it easier to get on and off, while technology including USB charging points, LED lighting and regenerative braking will also be installed to make the new trains more efficient.

Funding of up to $20,000 is available through the Local Capability Fund to assist local businesses interested in working on METRONET projects to improve their capability and competitiveness in supplying goods and services.