SkyTrain's first new generation 5-car train being tested (PHOTOS/VIDEO)

SkyTrain's first new generation five-car train now being tested (PHOTOS/VIDEO)

The first Mark V SkyTrain train being tested at Alstom's facility in Kingston, Ontario, August 2023. (TransLink)

TransLink is set to begin a years-long period of being on the receiving end of a massive new generation fleet of SkyTrain cars for the Expo and Millennium lines.

The very first train of 41 five-car-long Mark V trains — a total of 205 cars — is now in the process of being tested at train manufacturer Alstom’s (formerly known as Bombardier Transportation) facility in Kingston, Ontario.

These fully articulated trains are SkyTrain’s longest and have the most passenger capacity by a wide margin. The trains are so long that TransLink has to undergo a $78 million project to upgrade select stations to handle their longer length — the length of the entire platform.

As well, with the articulated links between the cars, just like the Mark III, passengers can walk from one end of the train to the other.

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The Mark V is essentially a major upgraded version of SkyTrain’s current newest model of train, the Mark III, which was introduced into service between 2016 and 2020. However, the current Mark III trains are shorter with a four-car length.

First look at #SkyTrain‘s very first new generation Mark V train being tested at the Ontario plant!

These 5-car-long trains boast improved features & more capacity with a length spanning the entire Expo/Millennium platform. #TransLink #vanpoli 1/2https://t.co/AVj2HZQZay pic.twitter.com/Gq2PVOCEVn

— Kenneth Chan (@iamkennethchan) August 22, 2023

mark v skytrain translink test alstom kingston ontario august 2023

The first Mark V SkyTrain train being tested at Alstom’s facility in Kingston, Ontario, August 2023. (TransLink)

The first Mark V SkyTrain train being tested at Alstom’s facility in Kingston, Ontario, August 2023, with the old Mark I cars in the background. (TransLink)

The first Mark V SkyTrain train being tested at Alstom’s facility in Kingston, Ontario, August 2023. (TransLink)

Not only do the trains provide more capacity, but they include enhanced features such as an improved seating configuration, more spaces for bikes, luggage, and leaning pads, flashing door closing indicator lights, and new LCD digital information displays to provide the real-time location of the train, next station announcements, and other onboard transit alerts.

“This is an exciting and important step forward in launching the next generation of SkyTrain cars,” said TransLink CEO Kevin Quinn in a statement today.

Brad West, the chair of TransLink’s Mayors’ Council and the mayor of Port Coquitlam, added: “The Mark V will play a vital role as we continue to work on expanding our SkyTrain network across the region. From the Broadway Subway to the Surrey-Langley SkyTrain, we remain committed to improving public transit in Metro Vancouver.”

The current testing procedures at the Alstom facility include tests on the brakes, power systems, doors, and car connectivity, as well as propulsion and automatic running on rails to simulate real-life operations.

After completing its Ontario tests, this particular first train is expected to be shipped to Metro Vancouver for further local system testing ahead of the start of its regular options. It is expected to arrive later this year, and it could go into service next year if it passes all tests.

All 205 Mark V cars will progressively arrive through the end of 2027.

“We appreciate our longstanding collaboration with TransLink and share their dedication to connecting communities via sustainable, reliable, and inclusive mobility,” said Michael Keroulle, president of the Americas region at Alstom.

“The first train of the new fleet — designed, built, and tested in Canada — is set to commence qualification testing on our upgraded test track at our Kingston, Ontario, facility, bringing Vancouverites one step closer to riding the new Mark V trains.”

The first Mark V SkyTrain train being tested at Alstom’s facility in Kingston, Ontario, August 2023. (TransLink)

The capacity from 125 Mark V cars will be used to retire the original fleet of 150 Mark I cars dating from the 1980s and early 1990s and increase the capacity needed in time for the 2026 opening of the Millennium Line Broadway Extension to Arbutus. Another 80 new cars will be used to improve overall capacity on the Expo and Millennium lines.

In 2020, TransLink secured a $723 million deal with Alstom for the order of the Mark V train fleet.

TransLink’s entire Expo Millennium Upgrade Program carries a cost of $1.47 billion, with major contributions by the federal and provincial governments, and the public transit authority.

Other major investments to handle the many new longer trains include the construction of a new additional major SkyTrain operations and maintenance centre near Braid Station in Coquitlam. Construction activity on the new $300 million facility on the 27-acre lot is picking up.

There is also major progress on TransLink’s $110 million project of building a new replacement state-of-the-art control centre building for the Expo and Millennium lines at SkyTrain’s operational hub in Edmonds.

Meanwhile, SkyTrain Canada Line saw 12 new additional two-car trains (24 cars) enter service between 2019 and 2020. As a physically separate system with a different track technology and specifications, it uses its own fleet, which is built by South Korea’s Rotem, a division of Hyundai.

skytrain omc 4 construction progress august 19 2023

Construction on SkyTrain’s new OMC4 operations and maintenance centre in Coquitlam for the Expo and Millennium lines, as of August 19, 2023. (Kenneth Chan/Daily Hive)

skytrain edmonds control centre building construction progress august 19 2023

Construction on SkyTrain’s new Edmonds control centre for the Expo and Millennium lines, as of August 19, 2023. (Kenneth Chan/Daily Hive)

Mark V SkyTrain mockup, November 2021. (Kenneth Chan/Daily Hive)

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