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Utah
Salt Lake City's Rail Program Ready for Rapid Expansion
Under its ''Frontlines 2015'' program, which will expand Salt Lake City's 69-car TRAX light-rail system from downtown to the international airport and from the Salt Lake-Sandy line to West Jordan, West Valley City and Draper, the Utah Transit Authority (UTA) placed an order for another 77 cars, with an option for 180 more, the largest single order ever out of Siemens corporation's facility in Sacramento, California, reports Salt Lake Tribune writer Brandon Loomis, noting that UTA is ''accelerating the program to a pace unseen at any American transit agency.''
UTA General Manager John English and spokeswoman Carrie Bohnsack-Ware noted that more than the initial 77 new light-rail cars will be needed for the next four lines, and that the option for an additional 180 secured the agency both a good bulk price and sufficient long-term flexibility in response to actual ridership.
Should UTA need fewer cars, it can offer some to other transit systems, said the manager, with the spokeswoman pointing out, ''If we see this huge crush of riders like we did on the Sandy-Salt Lake line and we need to buy more, then we can.''
The growing demand for new light-rail cars, sleeker and more accessible to the disabled as the floors align with station platforms, has allowed Siemens to increase its Sacramento work force by 30 percent in the past two years.
''Winning the Salt Lake City UTA contract,'' said Siemens Transportation Systems CEO Oliver Hauck in a statement, ''demonstrates the confidence our customers have in Siemens and our products well into the future and further enables us to reinforce our long-term commitment to the riding public.'' -- Salt Lake Tribune 5/15/2008
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