Omaha Streetcar Authority, a partnership between the City of Omaha and Omaha Metro, awarded the approximately $54 million (€50 million) contact, which includes an option for up to 29 additional streetcars, CAF reported July 3.
CAF will produce Urbos three-module, low-floor streetcars, which it said will be equipped to operate using either overhead catenary or Onboard Energy Storage Systems (see map below); they will be the first streetcars with OESS to be built by CAF for the United States.
HDR in May 2023 was selected to deliver the final design for the $389 million project (scroll down to download project details); the firm’s services cover track, transit systems, traffic, architectural and other civil design, procurement support, public engagement, and operations. The design phase is expected to be complete in 2024 (90% by this summer), with streetcar service scheduled to begin in 2027.
The physical components of the streetcar system (tracks, vehicles, maintenance facility, etc.) will be owned by the City of Omaha; the system will be operated by the Omaha Streetcar Authority, which was created in 2022. Annual costs to run and maintain it are estimated at $6.4 million, paid by the City’s Parking and Mobility Division Enterprise Fund, which generates revenue from parking fees in garages and meters.
CAF, which has production facilities in Elmira, N.Y., is currently supplying light rail vehicles for Massachusetts Bay Transportation Authority’s Green Line and Maryland’s Purple Line.
