Alstom has secured a €210 million contract to supply fifteen additional metros fitted with an on-board signalling and automated control system to Lille in France.
The new trains are for line 1 of the Métropole Européenne de Lille transport network and will be fitted with Alstom’s new Urbalis Fluence signalling and automated control system.
Urbalis Fluence technology uses direct train-to-train communication and is incorporated in the train’s on-board system’s intelligence, and the first trains in the world to the new-generation autopilot system.
With this system, the system’s intelligence is embedded into the trains, making them more autonomous and improving the system’s overall performance.
Six Alstom sites in France will be involved in building the new trains, including:
- design, train assembly, tests and testing at Valenciennes-Petite Forêt,
- bogies at Le Creusot,
- motors at Ornans,
- powertrain equipment at Tarbes,
- automated systems and development of Urbalis Fluence at Saint-Ouen,
- on-board computing and passenger information at Villeurbanne.
The new trains have four cars and are 52 metres long, based on Alstom’s rubber-tyred metro units, and fitted with high-performance traction equipment for improved energy efficiency.
Compared with the previous VAL-208 trainsets, the new units will be introduced into service from 2028 and offer greater comfort, improved accessibility and better passenger information than the sets they replace.
Each train has a maximum capacity of 545 passengers, and are designed with wide gangways and open circulation between the four cars.
Once all 15 new units are in service, Lille’s line 1 will comprise exclusively new-generation trains.
On board the trains, enhanced passenger information will be provided by multimedia displays and screens located throughout the train. There will be areas set aside for people with reduced mobility, and CCTV will contribute to passenger safety both on board the trains and on platforms.

The Lille metro network is reputed to be the most frequent metro in the world, with in rush hour one train running every 66 seconds.
In 2023, Alstom won a contract to supply 24 trams to Lille and delivered to Clermont Ferrand the first of five battery-powered trains of a project to lower CO2 emissions on non-electrified lines in France.
“Alstom is delighted with this new order from the Métropole Européenne de Lille for this new-generation equipment. These new, modern and comfortable metros represent a considerable asset for improving the network and the passenger experience.”
Frédéric Wiscart, President of Alstom France
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