Bombardier Congratulates the City of Phoenix on PHX Sky Train Opening

Bombardier Transportation participated in the grand opening for the newly installed INNOVIA APM 200 automated people mover (APM) system, known as PHX Sky Train, at the Phoenix Sky Harbor International Airport in Phoenix on April 8.

The mayor of Phoenix, Greg Stanton, led the proceedings with city council officials, airport leadership and partners, media and community stakeholders all joining in the celebrations.

Bombardier won the turnkey contract to design and supply the new transit system in July 2009. The scope of the project included all of the system-wide electrical and mechanical equipment including a fleet of 18 driverless INNOVIA APM 200 vehicles (six 3-car trains) and the Bombardier CITYFLO 650 communications-based train control system as well as power supply and distribution systems and communications systems. Bombardier was also responsible for constructing and equipping the facilities for operations, maintenance and storage. Project management, systems engineering and system integration, as well as test and commissioning, were carried out by Bombardier’s teams of transit system experts. Under a separate contract, Bombardier will provide 10 years of operations and maintenance (O&M) services.

Stage one of the PHX Sky Train transit system opened April 8. It will transport travellers along a 1.7 mile route, connecting the city’s public transport system at the 44th Street and Washington Metro light rail station to the airport’s east economy parking area station and on to terminal 4. A second stage, Stage 1a, will open in 2015, continuing the route from terminal 4 to terminal 3 over a distance of 0.7 miles. The terminal 3 station will include a short walkway to terminal 2.

Speaking ahead of the event, Phoenix Mayor Greg Stanton said “This is an exciting day for the city of Phoenix and Phoenix Sky Harbor International Airport. The PHX Sky Train’s connection to light rail paves the way for convenient, multi-modal transportation to and from the Airport and is a true point of pride for our city.”

Alain Aumais, vice president americas, systems division, Bombardier Transportation, added “We congratulate our customer, the city of Phoenix, on the official opening of the PHX Sky Train. This new transit system will meet the airport’s high standards of availability and efficiency in terms of passenger capacity and energy consumption. Our proven INNOVIA APM systems consistently surpass availability levels of 99 percent at airports all over the world. As we move into the 10-year operations and maintenance phase, our highly-skilled O&M teams will provide world class levels of support in maintaining fleet safety, performance and reliability for many years to come.”

Phoenix Sky Harbor International Airport is one of the 10 busiest in the US for passenger traffic with more than 1,200 aircraft and more than 100,000 passengers arriving and departing on a typical day. The new INNOVIA APM system is designed to carry 3,300 passengers per hour per direction. It will operate 24 hours a day with trains running continuously in both directions and arriving as frequently as every three minutes. The average speed of the trains will be 23 mph but speeds up to 38 mph can be achieved. The journey time from the 44th Street Station to terminal 4 is five minutes plus an additional two minutes to reach terminal 3.