Services provided

Transport Studies (Analysis of the transport demand, Assessment of the operation model, Traffic study);  Economic and financial study; Preliminary Design; Environmental Impact Assessment; IT systems analyses

Description

The SIR system, also known as “Metrobus”, is the new public transport system of the City of Padova and it is divided into three lines connecting the city through north/south (SIR1 line, already in operation), east/west (SIR2 line with 29 stops and a total length of 14,6 km) and center/south-east axis (SIR3 line with 12 stops and a total length of 6 km).

It consists in a rubber-wheeled monorail tram with more than 90% of its network in reserved lanes. The tram runs on a central monorail built into a running platform in reinforced concrete with a suitable roughened surface, wide enough to hold the maximum encumbrance of the wheels. This solution reduces the cost of road surface maintenance and avoids the formation of tram line ruts. The vehicles are electrically driven with a single contact wire. Power is supplied by small substations located along the network, so to minimize the impact on the urban context.

The “system design” approach used in the first implementation phase lead to the design of an integrated transport network based on the outcomes of transport/traffic studies, operational models, passengers demand evaluation. The layout of the tram system minimizes the impact on car traffic and maximizes the benefits that the new public transport allows in terms of reduction of the urban car traffic and reduction of pollutions due to car traffic. Parking facilities and tram stops have been located in order to create a capillary access system for users now able to reach the city center and whichever spot of Padova without using their cars.

The project provides for the use of electric traction Translohr STE3 vehicles with 4 modules, powered by a single wire with a return through the rail, able to communicate with the signaling systems on ground and allowing further optimization of the travel times.

The new tram lines require the construction of important infrastructure such as a 3-point star road underpass for line 2 near Piazzale della Stanga, and for line 3 a bridge over the outflowing canal, with a single steel span of approximately 90 meters.