Stadler KISS Electric Trains Begin Operations in California: A New Phase in Passenger Transportation

The Swiss company Stadler has launched its double-decker KISS electric trains on the San Francisco – San Jose line in California for the first time, this is reported by the railway transport news portal Railway Supply.

Two seven-car trains have already begun operating on the 82 km section.

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The introduction of the remaining 17 trains is planned to be completed by September 21 of this year.

These trains are part of a large-scale project to electrify the Caltrain line, with a project cost estimated at nearly $2.5 billion.

The contract for the supply of 16 six-car KISS trains was signed back in 2016.

The American operator Caltrain was the customer, and the deal was valued at $551 million. The final assembly of the trains took place at Stadler’s plant in Salt Lake City.

Two years later, in 2018, an option for 37 additional cars was exercised. This allowed the trains to be extended to seven cars and created three more complete trains.

The launch of the new rolling stock was delayed by two years due to difficulties with the installation of signaling and centralization systems, as well as the Covid-19 pandemic.

The new KISS electric trains are set to replace the outdated double-decker cars from the Japanese company Nippon Sharyo and Canadian manufacturer Bombardier, which were operated with EMD diesel locomotives.

The introduction of these new trains will significantly improve the comfort and safety of passenger transportation on the San Francisco – San Jose line.

Photo: Caltrain

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