Škoda 10 T

The Škoda 10 T, or Škoda 10T, the latter being the common English-language form, is a three-carbody-section low-floor bi-directional tram, developed by Škoda Transportation. It was in production from 2000 to 2002.

Škoda 10 T
A Škoda 10 T on the Portland Streetcar
ManufacturerŠkoda Transportation
Assembly Plzeň, Czech Republic
Family nameŠkoda Elektra
Constructed2000–2002
SuccessorŠkoda 15 T (or United Streetcar model 100, under license, for the U.S. market)
Capacity30 (Seated)
127 (Standing)
Specifications
Train length20,130 mm (792.52 in)
Width2,460 mm (96.85 in)
Height3,440 mm (135 in)
Floor height350 mm (13.78 in)/780 mm (30.71 in)
Low-floor50%
Doors6 (3 per side)
Articulated sections2
Maximum speed70 km/h (43 mph)
Weight28.8 t (28.3 long tons; 31.7 short tons)
Steep gradient(?)
Power output360 kW (480 hp)
(4 x 90 kW or 120 hp)
Bogiesfixed
Minimum turning radius18 m (59 ft)
Track gauge1,435 mm (4 ft 8 1⁄2 in) standard gauge

The vehicle is four-axled, and is based on the Škoda 03 T, which is a uni-directional model operating in a few cities in the Czech Republic. The low-floor area represents 50% of the entire vehicle floor.[1]

The 10T was originally part of Skoda's Astra model line,[2] although in the United States it was referred to only as the 10T, not by that model name, but it was later made part of the company's Elektra model line,[3] after that new line of models was created, around 2010.

Production

In total, 10 trams of this model were manufactured by Škoda and delivered to:

Those ten trams were constructed at a Škoda factory in the Czech Republic and shipped complete to the USA, under a joint venture between Škoda and Inekon Group, with Inekon having been responsible for most of the mechanical design, as well as marketing and shipping, and with Škoda having manufactured the vehicles. Their propulsion control equipment was supplied by an Austrian company, Elin EBG Traction, and braking systems by Knorr, under subcontracts.[2]

However, the relationship between Škoda and Inekon deteriorated, and the partnership collapsed in 2001.[4] Škoda 10T cars that had been ordered in 2000 or 2001 were delivered by Inekon to Portland and Tacoma in 2002, which was already after the Škoda-Inekon joint venture had effectively been dissolved. Inekon Group formed a new venture, named DPO Inekon, selling a slightly modified version of the 10T (which it named 12 Trio),[5] while Škoda continued to offer the 10T.

In 2006, Škoda entered into an agreement with a US company to permit the latter to construct a 10T tram (streetcar) under license. Oregon Iron Works (OIW), a specialized manufacturing company based in Clackamas, Oregon (an unincorporated community in the southeastern suburbs of Portland), signed an exclusive technology transfer agreement with Škoda in February 2006,[6] and in January 2007 it was awarded a contract to build one 10T streetcar for the Portland Streetcar system. OIW created a new subsidiary named United Streetcar LLC for this venture.[7]

This prototype tram, which could be considered an eleventh Škoda 10T but is more accurately described as the first United Streetcar 10T, was completed and delivered to Portland Streetcar in spring 2009. It was designated as model 10T3 by United Streetcar,[8] but that company changed the model designation to "100" for the production-series cars it built later.[9] The prototype US-built 10T was presented to the public and media at a ceremony held on 1 July 2009 in Portland,[10] but it did not enter service until September 2012,[11][12] delayed first by problems that came to light during acceptance testing and later by a decision to replace its propulsion-control system with a new one built by a US company, in order to increase the US content.[13]

In August 2009, Portland signed a US$20 million contract with United Streetcar for the supply of six more streetcars,[14] but the city decided in 2010 to modify the OIW/United Streetcar contract for these six cars, to substitute equipment from Elin EBG Traction for the originally planned Škoda equipment.[15] (They did not receive the experimental system with which the 10T3 prototype was fitted.) They were delivered in 2013 and 2014.

In 2010, the city of Tucson, Arizona, placed an order with United Streetcar for seven similar trams for a new tram line to be built there, named Sun Link.[16] An eighth was added to the order in July 2012.[17][18] Designated as model 200, differing from the 100 in having more powerful air conditioning systems,[19] they were delivered in 2013 and 2014.

In April 2012, the District of Columbia Department of Transportation, in Washington, DC, placed an order for two model 100 streetcars for use on the DC Streetcar's H Street/Benning Road Line, under construction for opening in 2015,[20] and the order was expanded to three cars in August 2012.[21] The three cars were delivered between January 2014[22] and June 2014.[23]

The orders from all three cities were completed in 2014, the last car being delivered to Portland in November of that year.[24] With no standing orders at that time, United Streetcar ceased production. Its tramcar manufacturing facilities in Oregon were repurposed by its parent company, OIW,[25] and United Streetcar was formally dissolved in December 2018.[26]

  • Portland Streetcar tram, with the logos of both Škoda and Inekon on the front
  • Tacoma Link tramcar
  • Interior of a Tacoma Link tram
  • Wheelchair ramp for a Tacoma Link car
  • United Streetcar-built tram built for Portland under license from Škoda
  • A United Streetcar tram for DC Streetcar

See also

References
  1. "Streetcar 10 T: Bi-directional three-section low-floor streetcar for Portland and Tacoma". Škoda Transportation. Archived from the original on 11 January 2010. Retrieved 28 November 2012.
  2. Taplin, M. R. (October 2001). "Return of the (modern) streetcar: Portland leads the way". Tramways & Urban Transit. Hersham, Surrey, UK: Ian Allan Publishing Ltd. pp. 369–375. ISSN 1460-8324. Archived from the original on 27 March 2019. Retrieved 4 June 2019.
  3. "Elektra 10 T Tramcar" (PDF). Škoda Transportation. Retrieved 6 June 2019.
  4. "Czechs want to introduce trams to Dakar". Hospodářské noviny newspaper. 13 September 2006. Retrieved 4 July 2010.
  5. Tramways & Urban Transit magazine, September 2003, p. 347. Light Rail Transit Association (UK).
  6. "About United Streetcar". United Streetcar. Retrieved 16 November 2009.
  7. "Oregon Iron Works gets contract for streetcar". Portland Business Journal. 26 January 2007. Retrieved 16 November 2009.
  8. "United Streetcar ... US manufacturer established for new trams". (April 2007). Tramways & Urban Transit, p. 146. Ian Allan Publishing/Light Rail Transit Association (UK).
  9. "United Streetcar gears up for series production". Tramways & Urban Transit magazine, November 2010, p. 406.
  10. Brugger, Joe (2 July 2009). "Transportation secretary watches as 'Made in USA' streetcar makes debut". The Oregonian. Retrieved 4 June 2019.
  11. "Portland Opens New Line" (November 2012). Tramways & Urban Transit magazine, p. 409.
  12. Rose, Joseph (27 September 2012). "Portland's newest streetcar plagued by glitches during eastside loop's opening week". The Oregonian. Archived from the original on 29 September 2012. Retrieved 6 November 2012.
  13. Carinci, Justin (19 April 2010). "Grant propels streetcar development". Daily Journal of Commerce. Portland, Oregon. Archived from the original on 29 April 2010. Retrieved 4 June 2019.
  14. Rivera, Dylan (14 August 2009). "Portland inks $20 million deal for locally made streetcars". The Oregonian. Archived from the original on 17 August 2009. Retrieved 4 June 2019.
  15. Tramways & Urban Transit, August 2010, p. 313. LRTA Publishing (UK).
  16. "Tucson to United Streetcar: Build seven". Railway Age. 8 June 2010. Retrieved 17 August 2012.
  17. DaRonco, Darren (13 July 2012). "Backup streetcar to cost Tucson $3.6M". Arizona Daily Star. Retrieved 27 September 2012.
  18. "Worldwide Review" (September 2012). Tramways & Urban Transit magazine, p. 356.
  19. "United Streetcar Options". United Streetcar. Archived from the original on 2 September 2010. Retrieved 5 September 2013.
  20. Neibauer, Michael (5 April 2012). "D.C. strikes new deal for two streetcars". The Washington Business Journal. Retrieved 16 September 2012.
  21. Neibauer, Michael (22 August 2012). "D.C. buying third streetcar from Oregon Iron Works". The Washington Business Journal. Retrieved 16 September 2012.
  22. "First of Three American Made DC Streetcar Vehicles to Arrive in District on Tuesday, January 21" (Press release). DDOT. 17 January 2014. Retrieved 14 November 2014.
  23. Tramways & Urban Transit magazine, July 2014, p. 305.
  24. Laris, Michael (29 November 2014). "U.S. effort to help build homegrown streetcar manufacturer falls short". The Washington Post. Retrieved 23 November 2017.
  25. Schmidt, Brad (18 March 2015). "Streetcar jobs never arrived". The Oregonian. p. A1. Retrieved 17 September 2015.
  26. "Business Entity Filing Records - 32989295". Oregon Secretary of State. 19 January 2019. Archived from the original on 4 June 2019. Retrieved 4 June 2019.
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