First Light Rail Trains Arrive
Norfolk, Va. – The first of nine trains for The Tide light rail system arrived in Hampton Roads late Monday on the back of flatbed rail cars after a cross-country trip that began in Sacramento, CA.
Covered in blue protective shrink wrap, the trains were held overnight in a freight yard and then moved onto the Sewell’s Point line for delivery to the new light rail line in Norfolk on Tuesday.
The trip, slowed on its final leg by rough weather in the south, began at the Siemens Transportation Systems facility where vehicles start out as components and sheet metal before assembly into transit vehicles.
Among the cars to arrive is one that will be designated as No. 407 in honor of Norfolk’s last electric street car which bore the same identification number until that service was discontinued in July, 1948.
The light rail system represents a rebirth of train service for downtown Norfolk and a new era for Hampton Roads Transit which has been overseeing The Tide project since construction began in December 2007.
The trains will be stored on the tracks and moved periodically as system construction proceeds. The trains will undergo a series of static and dynamic tests in the months to come before revenue service begins.
They will be guarded 24 hours a day while construction continues on the vehicle maintenance and storage facility which will be completed next year. By winter, all nine light rail vehicles will be in Norfolk.
NOTE: Track safety regulations prohibit members of the media and general public from walking along the tracks. Please avoid doing this. The space is restricted.