Bombardier’s Brazil monorail honored for innovation
Won UITP’s award for Intermodal Innovation for Latin America for its Innovia Monorail 300 system for the São Paulo Metro. The monorail’s advantages include its high passenger capacity combined with the fact that the system is cost effective to introduce as it does not require major infrastructure or civil works.
Bombardier Transportation won the award for Intermodal Innovation for Latin America for its Innovia Monorail 300 system for the São Paulo Metro in Brazil.
The International Association of Public Transport (UITP) presented the award to André Guyvarch, president and chief country representative Brazil, Bombardier Transportation, at a ceremony held during the 60th UITP World Congress and Mobility & City Transport Exhibition in Geneva.
The award confirms that the Eastern Express Monorail, also known as São Paulo Metro line 15, has put the city of São Paulo on the map as a global pioneer in urban public transport. Brazil´s largest city will be the first in the world to implement Bombardier’s high capacity Innovia Monorail technology for a public transit system.
The UITP recognized Bombardier’s Innovia Monorail system for São Paulo as a true game-changer for public transportation in Latin America. It offers the ideal solution for megacities such as São Paulo, where innovative solutions are needed today to solve their mobility challenges. The monorail’s many advantages include its high passenger capacity combined with the fact that the system is cost effective to introduce as it does not require major infrastructure or civil works. Innovia Monorail technology offers transportation capacity similar to a metro while being up to twice as fast to implement.
São Paulo’s new 15-mile line with 17 stations will operate with 54 seven-car trains, connecting the Vila Prudente and Cidade Tiradentes areas in the eastern part of the city. The new driverless transit system for São Paulo features the integrated Bombardier Cityflo 650 communications-based train control technology, which will allow for very short headways of only 75 seconds. Currently this journey takes approximately two hours by car and the monorail will reduce the time to only 50 minutes, benefiting half a million users daily.
The project is being delivered by the Expresso Monotrilho Leste Consortium (Eastern Express Monorail consortium), led by Brazilian civil contractor Queiroz Galvão and incorporating construction firm Construtora OAS as well as Bombardier Transportation. The consortium was awarded the project in 2010 by the Companhia do Metropolitano de São Paulo (São Paulo Metro). The system will be completed in 2016.
More Rail
The Invisible Infrastructure of Passenger Flow
What a seat reservation system on Austria’s Railjet trains reveals about the future of rider experience, and why U.S. agencies should pay attention.
Read More →
Caltrain Board Approves FY27 Budget, Endorses Efficiency Measures
The move ensures Caltrain service will continue operating as usual in the near term, but long-term financial challenges remain for the rail agency absent a new revenue source.
Read More →
Alstom Acquires Delaware Site to Support Amtrak NextGen Acela Fleet
The company is investing more than $55 million to acquire and improve the property and will employ approximately 100 people at this site once it is operational.
Read More →
When Routine Fails: How Public Transit Must Adapt for the World Cup
The 2026 FIFA World Cup will test transit agencies’ ability to manage unpredictable travel patterns, making real-time data and operational flexibility critical to moving millions of visitors efficiently.
Read More →
California Selects Team for Nation’s First True High-Speed Rail Track and Systems Contract
The board action follows completion of track installation at the 150-acre southern railhead in Kern County, which will serve as the staging and distribution hub for high-speed track and systems installation.
Read More →
Seattle's Sound Transit Launches New Sounder Railcars into Service
Alstom manufactured all the cars under a $46.5 million contract and came into service in anticipation of summer crowds for soccer and baseball.
Read More →
Alstom Partners With Universities to Build Rail Talent Pipeline
The partnerships include a new engineering scholarship fund at Alfred State College in Western New York and collaborations with transportation centers at the University of Pennsylvania and New York University.
Read More →
Chicago's NITA Act Moves Into Next Phase as Service Improvements Begin
Rider-focused improvements will begin rolling out across the system immediately as CTA, Metra, and Pace increase service this summer in the six-county region.
Read More →
Seattle’s Sound Transit Adopts Updated ST3 System Plan
The updated system plan incorporates cost savings across the agency, including new revenue sources and financial policies, to set the agency on a sustainable path for the future.
Read More →
Inside Look: EMBARK Expands Fare-Free Transit Program Through New Public-Private Partnership
The OKC transit agency says sponsorship helps subsidize the Third Friday Free initiative while reducing barriers for first-time riders and boosting ridership across buses, streetcars, and river cruises.
Read More →