Families of metros

[micro]

Metro systems of the world are diverse, but nevertheless some metro systems are obviously (or not so obviously) related with each other. Some use the same or similar trains, or the station design is similar, or both -- or something else is related.

The following List includes suggestions from this thread until 11 Jan 2009:

Former Soviet family
Members: Moscow, Saint Petersburg, Kiev and many more
Characteristics: the same type of trains is used, and stations are often lavishly decorated and made of marble or other natural stone. Many cities began with a triangular three-line network layout with three transfer stations.

Warsaw Pact family
Members: Budapest, Bucarest, Prague, Sofia
Characteristics: the same type of trains as in the Soviet family is used (or newer developments), stations unadorned.

Michelin/Alstom family
Members: Lausanne (M2 - Switzerland), Lyon (line A, B and D - France), Marseille (France), Mexico City (Mexico), Montréal (Canada), Paris (line 1, 4, 6, 11 and 14 - France), Santiago de Chile (line 1,2 and 5 - Chile)
Derivatives: VAL family
Characteristics: rubber-tyred metro developed by Michelin in the 1930s

VAL family
Members: Toulouse, Lille, Paris Airport shuttles (Orlyval and CDGVal) Rennes (France), Turin (Italy), Uijeongbu (South Korea), Taipei (Taiwan), Chicago (O'Hare Hare airport - USA)
Characteristics: Sleek little automated, rubber-tyred metros. Platforms are short and have platform screen doors.

Ansaldo/Breda family
Members: Brescia, Milan's Line 5, Copenhagen.
Characteristics: Similar trains.

Vancouver/KL family
Members: Vancouver, Kuala Lumpur
Characteristics: Automated trains using LIM technology.

US Bombardier ART family
Members: Vancouver (Expo and Millennium Lines), Kuala Lumpur, Toronto, New York City, Detroit People Mover, Beijing (Airport Line), Yongin (South Korea), Miami Metro Mover.
Characteristics: Spacious trains with carpets.

US Rohr Industries family
Members: Washington, San Franisco BART
Characteristics: Spacious trains with carpets.

US Budd family
Members: Baltimore, Miami.
Characteristics: Same trains.

US Boeing LRT family
Members: Boston, San Francisco (MUNI).
Characteristics: Same trains.

Istanbul-Caracas family
Members: Istanbul, Caracas.
Characteristics: Using similar trains.

German/Austrian family
Members: Berlin, Munich, Nuremberg, Vienna.
Characteristics: Using similar trains.

Spanish family
Members: Barcelona (Spain), Santo Domingo (Dominican Republic).
Characteristics: Using similar trains.

Siemens LRT family
Members: Frankfurt, San Diego, Portland, Edmonton, Calgary.
Characteristics: Older LRT train types are the same.
Derivatives: Rhine-Ruhr LRT family.

Rhine-Ruhr LRT family
Members: Bochum, Bonn, Cologne, Dortmund, Düsseldorf, Essen, Mülheim.
Characteristics: Using very similar LRT trains (Typ B).

Hamburg Derivatives family
Derivatives: Hamburg, Athens, Amsterdam, Dublin.
Characteristics: Hamburg's Metro operator was consultant to other cities, and some older train types look similar.

Cinese family
Members: Hong Kong, Shanghai, Shenzhen, Guangzhou, ...
Characteristics: Unadorned, clean and solid station design, often using coloured plates. Western-style trains. Hong Kong acted as consultant for most Chinese metro cities.

Japanese/Korean family
Derivatives: Tokyo, Kyoto, Kobe, Seoul, ...
Characteristics: Unadorned, clean and solid station design, often using coloured plates. Majority are run by Japan Railways Group, other trains mostly derived from those.

Australian Commuter Trains family
Derivatives: Sydney, Brisbane, Perth, Adelaide.
Characteristics: Similar system and train design.



Relationships can be manifold. I may be over-simplifying things here and have left out much. But I'm sure you guys can add a lot of information about the families above or add a lot of other families. If you like...

Maybe this could even lead to kind of a genealogical tree of metros...

[stevevance]

For the U.S. family, you are correct to relate BART and Washington, DC. However, only those two belong in the group; Atlanta (MARTA) does not belong.

BART and Washington, DC, trains were initially both made by Rohr Industries.

You could group Chicago, NYC, and LA subway trains because they are all boxy, stainless steel-clad cars.

[radiant_city]

Originally Posted by stevevance

You could group Chicago, NYC, and LA subway trains because they are all boxy, stainless steel-clad cars.

Or, perhaps, Boston's could be added... albeit that they are boxy and stainless-steel-clad with further colored plating to indicate which line you're on (yellow, green, blue, or red).

[micro]

Originally Posted by stevevance

You could group Chicago, NYC, and LA subway trains because they are all boxy, stainless steel-clad cars.

I don't know if "boxy and steel-clad" qualifies as a relationship. Do they have the same manufacturer or something else in common?

[allurban]

Originally Posted by micro

I don't know if "boxy and steel-clad" qualifies as a relationship. Do they have the same manufacturer or something else in common?

The latest trains in Chicago and NYC are manufactured by Bombardier. All existing Toronto subway cars also fit this "family" description as do the cars of a metro in Turkey.

I would describe it as "boxy, steel-clad, modular trainsets of various sizes" with two subgroups - underground and elevated.

The description of the Bombardier ART system can also be divided into two subgroups...ART used as a main line service (Vancouver, Kuala Lumpur, Yongin) and ART used as a sub-line or specialized service (Toronto, New York-JFK, Beijing, Detroit).

I would also separate the HK line from the "Asian" grouping...HK trains have more in common with Singapore than with Japanese cities.

You could also consider the Australian commuter-trains-as metro familh.

Cheers, m

[Tri-ring]

Originally Posted by allurban

The latest trains in Chicago and NYC are manufactured by Bombardier. All existing Toronto subway cars also fit this "family" description as do the cars of a metro in Turkey.

To my knowledge NYC subways recently recieved trainsets from Kawasaki.
I also remember seeing alot of Kinki Sharyo trainsets as well.

[RawLee]

Originally Posted by micro

Russian (or former Soviet-Union) family
Member cities: Moscow, Saint Petersburg, Kiev and many more
Characteristics: the same type of trains is used, and stations are often lavishly decorated and made of marble or other natural stone.

I think the russian-type has 2 sub-types: One is the soviet,as you sad,lavishly decorated and such,and the other,from former Warsaw-pact countries,which are just plain ugly,"commie"-style. Usually long platforms,the same trains everywhere.

[_Night City Dream_]

East Asian family
Derivatives: Tokyo, Kyoto, Kobe, Hong Kong, Shanghai, Shenzhen, Guangzhou, ...
Characteristics: Unadorned, clean and solid station design, often using coloured plates. Japanese cities often have similar trains.

It seems to me Chinese metros are quite different from the Japanese and Korean systems... The trains have western look because of being designed by Europeans. In Korea and Japan they use their own design of them.

[Axort]

Originally Posted by micro

Russian (or former Soviet-Union) family
Member cities: Moscow, Saint Petersburg, Kiev and many more
Characteristics: the same type of trains is used, and stations are often lavishly decorated and made of marble or other natural stone.

I think decoration style is not a reliable way to identify this family. Stations are different and somethimes have no decorations at all. Main characteristic of this family is a technical compatibility.
Also, trains are not always the same here, but they are compatible.

[staff]

Originally Posted by micro

VAL family
Member cities: Toulouse, Lille, Rennes (France)
Derivatives: Paris (line 14), Turin (Italy), Copenhagen.
Characteristics: Sleek little automated, rubber-tyred metros. Platforms are short and have platform screen doors.

Copenhagen's train sets don't have rubber tyres. I think it's more similar to eg. Vancouver's Skytrain than the French VALs actually.

Would "S-bahn metros" qualify as a family? Ie. actual metros that are called S-bahn and are therefore perceived as being commuter systems?
Examples: Berlin S-bahn, Hamburg S-bahn, Copenhagen S-tog.



Also, I'd put "Chinese metros" as a separate category, including Hong Kong's MTR. The MTR Corporation has been consulted when designing several of the metro systems in mainland China, and the systems are thus very much alike.

[Minato ku]

Turin metro is a VAL exactly like Lille Toulouse or Rennes.

[micro]

Originally Posted by Isek

Nice thread! Micro, can you please update your starting post to ensure some structure?

I'm a little overwhelmed by the loads of information you guys came up with. At the moment I don't have enough time and patience to sum up all those things, unfortunately. Maybe next week. But if anyone is in the mood to do it earlier, just post it and if desired I can then copy it into the first post (credits included, of course).

But it's interesting to read, keep your ideas coming!

[staff]

Originally Posted by staff

Also, I'd put "Chinese metros" as a separate category, including Hong Kong's MTR. The MTR Corporation has been consulted when designing several of the metro systems in mainland China, and the systems are thus very much alike.

[disturbman]

Are we going to study metro lines or metro types (train...) ?

Because that can change things a lot.

For exemple most of the parisian system was built like an underground tram system with a station every 500m. Thats not the configuration of most of metro system in the world. As a matter of fact the New York metro is much more like Paris RER system than Paris metro.

[Bahnsteig4]

You can include the classic trainsets of Vienna, Munich and Nuremberg, as well.

[disturbman]

Originally Posted by micro

VAL family
Member cities: Toulouse, Lille, Rennes (France)
Derivatives: Paris (line 14), Turin (Italy), Copenhagen.
Characteristics: Sleek little automated, rubber-tyred metros. Platforms are short and have platform screen doors.

Hum... The Paris line 14 is not a derivative from the VAL family. But they do share a common philosphy. They are both rubber-tyred (based on Michelin's technology) and automated. But that's all. The 14 is a regular sized parisian metro line (train length is 90m and will be at some point the future increased to 120m).

So let me correct you:
Michelin (a type of rubber-Tyred metro developped by Michelin during the 1930s)
Member cities: Lausanne (M2 - Switzerland), Lyon (line A, B and D - France), Marseille (France), Mexico City (Mexico), Montréal (Canada), Paris (line 1, 4, 6, 11 and 14 - France), Santiago de Chile (line 1,2 and 5 - Chile)
Derivatives: VAL family

VAL family
Member cities: Toulouse, Lille, Paris Airport shuttles (Orlyval and CDGVal) Rennes (France), Turin (Italy), Uijeongbu (South Korea), Taipei (Taiwan), Chicago (O'Hare Hare airport - USA)
Derivatives: NeoVal family (but for the moment it's more a concept than anything else)

It will be more accurate like this

[Homer J. Simpson]

Originally Posted by micro

Metro systems of the world are diverse, but nevertheless some metro systems are obviously (or not so obviously) related with each other. Some use the same or similar trains, or the station design is similar, or both -- or something else is related.

What comes to my mind (please correct me if I'm wrong or fill in the gaps):

Russian (or former Soviet-Union) family
Member cities: Moscow, Saint Petersburg, Kiev and many more
Characteristics: the same type of trains is used, and stations are often lavishly decorated and made of marble or other natural stone.

VAL family
Member cities: Toulouse, Lille, Rennes (France)
Derivatives: Paris (line 14), Turin (Italy), Copenhagen.
Characteristics: Sleek little automated, rubber-tyred metros. Platforms are short and have platform screen doors.

Vancouver/KL family
Member cities: Vancouver, Kuala Lumpur
Characteristics: Automated trains using LIM technology.

US family
Derivatives: Washington, San Franisco BART, Atlanta and many more
Characteristics: Not sure, they just seem similar to me.

Rhine-Ruhr LRT family
Member cities: Bochum, Bonn, Cologne, Dortmund, Düsseldorf, Essen, Mülheim.
Characteristics: Using similar LRT trains.

Hamburg derivatives family
Derivatives: Hamburg, Athens, Amsterdam, Dublin.
Characteristics: Hamburg's Metro operator once gave consultancy to these cities, and some older train types look similar.

East Asian family
Derivatives: Tokyo, Kyoto, Kobe, Hong Kong, Shanghai, Shenzhen, Guangzhou, ...
Characteristics: Unadorned, clean and solid station design, often using coloured plates. Japanese cities often have similar trains.


Relationships can be manifold. I may be over-simplifying things here and have left out much. But I'm sure you guys can add a lot of information about the families above or add a lot of other families. If you like...

Maybe this could even lead to kind of a genealogical tree of metros...

You missed a few here:

Toronton/NYC/Vancouver/KL family
Member cities: Vancouver, Kuala Lumpur, Toronto, New York City
Characteristics: Automated trains using LIM technology.

Toronto has the Scarborough RT which was the pilot project for the ICTS.

New York also has a line that goes to JFK I believe.

[Der Alte]

Originally Posted by Homer J. Simpson

You missed a few here:

Toronton/NYC/Vancouver/KL family
Member cities: Vancouver, Kuala Lumpur, Toronto, New York City
Characteristics: Automated trains using LIM technology.

Toronto has the Scarborough RT which was the pilot project for the ICTS.

New York also has a line that goes to JFK I believe.

Currently know as the Bombardier ART brand of rapid transit systems.

You could also add the Detroit People Mover, the Beijing Airport Line and also the system being built in Yongin, South Korea.

In Vancouver, only the Expo and Millennium Lines use Bombardier ART technology. The Canada Line that is under construction does not. The Canada Line does however use the SELTRAC Automatic train control system by Thales (formerly sold by Alcatel, sold by Standard Elecktrik Lorenz of Germany before that). SELTRAC is used in many more systems than Bombardier ART technology is used. The two technologies do not necessarily go hand in hand, but you do find them paired together in many instances. The Yongin installation does not use SELTRAC but Bombardier CityFLO 650 train control technology instead. This is the first Bombardier ART installation to NOT use SELTRAC.

[DELCROID]

The Istambul Metro is very similiar in design to the Metro de Caracas:



Caracas/Istambul:

[C-Carter]

Both trains (MP-89 and NS-93) are too similar,both are Rubber-Tyred, the development company is Alstom.

PARIS . MP-89


SANTIAGO . NS-93


Cheers