Škoda ForCity Smart 45T presented in Brno, to begin test runs now
The trams will mainly be used on the new line to the campus.
Škoda Group and the Brno City Transport Company (DPMB) presented the first ForCity Smart 45T tram to the public today. The vehicles will service the new line to the Brno university campus. The tram will now run in test operation.
The new trams will gradually replace the aging KT8D5 vehicles from the 1980s and 1990s. The transport company has ordered five trams, with another due to arrive in Brno by the end of the year, and the remaining three to be delivered in March 2023. DPMB has an option for a further 35 vehicles, which it will use within its financial possibilities.
The new bidirectional trams are intended primarily for Line 8 to the university campus and Bohunice Hospital. The new one-kilometer line, which has the longest tram tunnel in the country (600 m), is scheduled to be open for passenger service by the end of the year.
The ForCity Smart 45T tram is a bidirectional fully low-floor double-articulated vehicle with swivel chassis. It is 31 meters long and offers space for up to 233 passengers with 64 seated. The maximum operating speed is 70 km/h. The tram is air-conditioned and has a camera system, USB chargers, and partially tinted side windows. The electrical equipment allows for regeneration, i.e. returning electricity back to the grid when braking.
More pictures available here.
Edited and translated by Lucie Trávníčková