MHIENG Completes First Delivery of 7000-Series New-Series Carriages for Hiroshima Rapid Transit’s “Astram Line“

Delivery of first 6 carriages (1 train) of total 66 (11 trains) ordered, to be completed in FY2025

Superior features include light weight, robust durability, easy recycling, and minimal vibration and noise, for enhanced riding comfort

On October 4, Mitsubishi Heavy Industries Engineering, Ltd. (MHIENG), a Group company of Mitsubishi Heavy Industries, Ltd. (MHI) based in Yokohama, delivered 7000-Series railway carriages to the railyard of Hiroshima Rapid Transit Co., Ltd. for the Hiroshima New Transit Line 1, also known as the “Astram Line,” an Automated Guideway Transit (AGT) system operated by that company in Hiroshima City. The delivery was the first of a total 66 new series carriages (11 trains) ordered in 2017 as upgrade units to be delivered in phases between FY2019 and FY2025. Test and commissioning on site will now go forward toward commercial inauguration of the new carriages next March.

The 7000-Series carriages are a new type adopting all-aluminum-alloy, double-skin structure that offers salient advantages in terms of light weight, outstanding durability and easy recycling. For improved riding comfort, the 7000-Series carriages feature MHIENG’s newest “T-smover” bogies: these are of lightweight and excellent durability, with added benefits from minimal noise and vibration plus superlative ease of maintenance. Passenger comfort is further enhanced with MHIENG’s specially designed “G-Fit” seats.

Hiroshima Rapid Transit launched operation of the Astram Line in August 1994 as a joint initiative involving both the private and public sectors, led by the municipal authority of Hiroshima. The line connects Hondori Station in the city center with Koiki-koen-mae Station in Hiroshima’s northwestern outskirts, a total distance of 18.4 kilometers (11.4 miles). This makes the Astram Line the longest AGT system in operation in Japan.

AGT systems are designed to make effective use of space above roadways, and since 1981 they have been introduced in numerous Japanese cities. Their adoption of rubber tires results in minimal noise and vibration, making AGTs environmentally harmonious with their surroundings.

In 2018 MHIENG took over the transportation system business formerly conducted by MHI. The Company has an abundant record of AGT system deliveries both in Japan and overseas, including major hub airports in the United States, Asia and the Middle East. Going forward, MHIENG will turn this robust experience to full advantage as it continues successive deliveries of the remaining 7000-Series carriages (10 trains) to Hiroshima Rapid Transit in the years ahead.