TRANSLINK, which operates Vancouver’s Skytrain metro system, has awarded Thales a contract to supply 82 SelTrac Vehicle On-Board Controllers (VOBCs), a key component of CBTC signalling used on the Expo and Millennium lines, for installation on 41 new trains on order from Bombardier.  

Thales has supplied its SelTrac CBTC solution for the network’s Expo and Millennium Lines since the first section of the network opened in 1985. The supplier also secured a contract to install the system on the Broadway Subway, a 5.7km extension of the Millennium Line, in September.  

Translink awarded Bombardier a $C 721m ($US 565m) contract to supply 41 five-car trains for the network in September, which will replace existing trains and boost fleet capacity when the Broadway extension opens in 2025.

The VOBCs, which control acceleration, braking, direction of travel, door operations, enforce speed limits and report identified faults, will increase capacity and improve reliability. It will also enable the new trains to operate safely and efficiently with the existing fleet.  

Thales will also deliver the VOBC system as part of the Toronto Transit Commission’s new Finch West expansion project.  

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