The consultation on the design of the future tramway has given its verdict: the chosen design is… ochre! It was the internet users who chose from the three proposals by designer Ora-ïto.
This choice is meant to recall the walls of the old city, and the project characteristics are defined as follows: “The entrances are marked by vertical stripes, which, in addition to their signaling function, provide a rhythm to the overall design. The glossy finish applied to the entire body will reflect the environment, allowing for better integration into the city.”
We thought that a tramway was just a means of urban transport, and now we discover a work of art!
Moving on to serious and more profitable matters for the project, Christian Estrosi has also announced the choice of the manufacturer of the trams which proposes the brand-new high-tech Citadis X5 models from Alstom, one of the jewels of French industry and an experienced company already equipping 54 cities in France and around the world.
Its president, Henri Poupart-Lafarge, presented the technical features which will make Line 2 of the Nice tramway a showcase for the advanced technologies adopted, in particular the absence of an overhead contact line and spot supply at stations thanks to lithium storage, a world first!
In total, the contract signed between the Metropolis and the supplier consists of 19 trains, each 45 meters long, and the energy recharging installations at stations for a total value of 91 million euros.
An option of 18 additional trains is planned for Line 3, with a corresponding cost of 97.9 million euros.
Seven of Alstom’s twelve French sites contribute to the development of this tramway system for the Métropole Nice Côte d’Azur: La Rochelle for the design and assembly of the trains, Le Creusot for the bogies, Ornans for the motors, Tarbes for the traction chains, Villeurbanne for onboard computing and passenger information, Saint-Ouen for design coordination, and in the Provence-Alpes-Côte d’Azur region, Vitrolles for the ground-based static charging solution.
