Biz Briefs: Vicinity, Siemens Mobility, and More

Vicinity Motor Corp., Siemens Mobility, and HNTB Corporation recently announced news from their respective companies.

Vicinity Secures Order for Four Vicinity Diesel Buses

Vicinity Motor Corp. announced the receipt of a new purchase order from Simcoe County in Ontario, Canada for four (4) Vicinity Classic buses valued at over CAD$1.9 million, marking its seventh re-order from Vicinity.

Per the terms of the supply agreement, Simcoe County has ordered four of the Company's 35-foot Clean-Diesel Vicinity Classic buses for delivery in 2024. 

The Vicinity buses will service Simcoe County LINX. Simcoe is an unincorporated community in Southwestern Ontario, Canada near Lake Erie.

"Our classic transit bus continues to grow our backlog, illustrating why we continue to serve as the dominant Canadian supplier in the mid-sized heavy-duty bus market with longstanding blue-chip customer relationships across North America," said William Trainer, founder/CEO of Vicinity Motor Corp. "Partnerships with communities such as Simcoe County are important, helping to fulfill their current transit needs as they target efficiency opportunities and prioritize future projects that reduce energy and greenhouse gas emissions for their public transportation systems.”

New S-Bahn for Berlin

Siemens Mobility announced that the new Berlin S-Bahn fleet has been completed. All 106 trains of the new series are now in service. 

The trains are equipped with air conditioning, passenger information systems, and cameras. 

The new fleet also increases the transport capacity in parts of the city’s S-Bahn network. 

In the course of replacing the older trains, the number of cars per train was also increased. 

For customers, this has specific benefits: longer trains operate on the Ring lines S41/S42 as well as the S8 line, and the S8 line is extended to Wildau during peak hours. 

The new S-Bahn fleet now offers a total of around 18,000 seats. The new trains have entered service successively since the beginning of 2021, and have been operating on lines S41, S42, S46, S47, and S8 since then.

Former FTA Regional Administrator Joins HNTB

Stephen Goodman, PE, has joined HNTB Corporation as national transit and rail practice consultant and vice president.

In this role, Goodman provides strategic guidance for transportation clients, sharing his experience and knowledge.

“I am grateful that Stephen is with us at HNTB,” said Ronnie Hakim, HNTB’s national transit and rail market sector leader and senior vice president. “His work and leadership experience with the federal government and transportation agencies will bring tremendous value to our clients.”

As regional administrator and senior executive with the FTA, Goodman oversaw a large portfolio of federally funded transit and transportation projects valued at more than $50 billion, including the development of aspects of the Gateway Program.

Goodman was responsible for overseeing the completion of the first phase of the Metropolitan Transportation Authority’s Second Avenue Subway and most recently the Grand Central Madison project. 

Prior to his role as regional administrator, Goodman led federal support through the FTA for the recovery efforts following both Hurricane Sandy and 9/11. He served as director of the Hurricane Sandy Recovery Office, providing technical support and coordination of more than $10 billion in federal emergency funding. 

Prior to that, he served as director of FTA’s Lower Manhattan Recovery Office charged with administering more than $4.5 billion in recovery funds to support the rebuilding of transportation infrastructure in the wake of the tragic events of 9/11.