Trains Made from Jilin, NE China on Track to Open for Rio Olympics

RIO DE JANEIRO - A new subway line, linking Rio de Janeiro's city centre, tourist neighbourhoods and beach areas to the main Olympic zone will start operating on Aug 1, the state government of Rio de Janeiro confirmed on Thursday.

The key transport line for the Olympics will use Chinese trains designed and produced by CRRC Changchun Railway Vehicles Co. 100 electric multiple units (EMU), a type of intercity, highspeed subway train from China, will come into service for Rio Olympics.

During the Games, which begin on Aug 5, services on the new subway line, namely line 4, will run from 6am to 1am on working days and Saturdays and from 7am to 1am on Sundays and public holidays. It has a limited access to the Olympics related people during the Games, and will be fully operational towards the public after the Games.

Track has now been laid along the entire length of the new line, which begins in the famous beachside neighborhood of Ipanema and ends in Barra da Tijuca, home to Barra Olympic Park. During the Games, Barra Olympic Park will be the heart of Games with nine venues hosting 16 Olympic and nine Paralympic sports, alongside the Main Press Centre and the International Broadcast Centre.

In the end of May an underground train made the complete journey on line 4 from Ipanema to Barra for the first time. Work on the giant construction project is now over 96 percent complete; electrical, ventilation and signalling systems are currently undergoing trials and new lifts and moving walkways are being tested.

Changchun Railway Vehicles Co plays an important role in these tests as its trains have to adapt to the electrical, ventilation and signalling systems. Its technical staff also test the engine, break, door and internal partitions of the train. During the Games, the company will work 24 hours a day to guarantee the smooth operation.

When fully operational, Line 4 will transport up to 300,000 passengers every day. It will remove about 2,000 vehicles per hour from Rio's roads at peak traffic times.

Rio State Transportation Secretary Rodrigo Vieira told Xinhua that local people are satisfied with the quality of Chinese trains.

"The subway trains have been operational in Rio's subway line 1 and 2, and we can say the local people 100 percent accept and welcome the trains. Therefore the majority of trains we use in Olympic subway line are from China," he said.

"Line 4 will contribute to making the Rio de Janeiro Olympic Games the best in history and will become an important legacy for the city, improving the quality of life of the people who live here," he added.

The Changchun Railway Vehicles Co belongs to China CRRC Corp Ltd, one of China's biggest train makers. CRRC started to research the Latin American market in 2004. Three years later, when Rio was chosen to host the 2014 World Cup, the government of Rio vowed to improve the city's rail network.

In 2009, when Rio won the contract for the Olympics, the city government eventually began to sign contracts with CRRC for the China-made vehicles, with CRRC selected over Siemens and Alstom.

CRRC was first given orders for 30 EMUs. After the first specially designed subway train arrived in Brazil in March 2012, CRRC won another 70 EMU orders because of the train's high performance and comfortable interior.

Over the past few years, CRRC provided 100 EMUs for Rio, and its vehicles will make up 82 percent of Rio's urban mass transit. It will also mark the first time that a Chinese train maker has taken part in an Olympic transportation system outside of China. To meet bid requirements and win contracts, CRRC offered more high-tech, cost-efficient solutions and special adjustments to meet Rio's needs.

The state and the city of Rio are investing heavily in transport infrastructure ahead of the Games. At the beginning of last week, Rio's international airport opened a new building that has almost doubled its passenger capacity. Last Saturday (28 May), the road linking Barra to southern Rio was expanded, increasing its traffic capacity by 30 per cent. On June 5, a new light rail system also begin operating in the centre of the city.