Kiel North America to Deliver 15,000+ Street Car Seats to Toronto Transit Commission

Elkhart, Indiana, September 9, 2014 (Newswire.com) -  

Kiel North America, a trendsetting seat provider to transit systems around the world, announced today that the company will be delivering a total of 204 new streetcars featuring Kiel light rail seats to the Toronto Transit Commission (TTC). Rail technology leader Bombardier Transportation will install a total of over 15,000 Kiel Simos seats in the TTC Flexity streetcars until the order will be completed in 2018.

The Toronto Transit Commission, who started out as Toronto Street Railway Company offering horse-drawn streetcar rides in 1862, is implementing a fourth series of streetcars in part to increase customer comfort and satisfaction. With over 250,000 riders per day also one of the busiest streetcar networks in the world, TTC wanted to offer more accessibility, comfort, and safety to its passengers while also considering factors such as cost effectiveness and longevity. The innovative and technologically advanced design the Bombardier 100% low floor Flexity streetcars offer is matched by the progressive style and ergonomic design of the Kiel Simos, a seat with a successful track record for street cars and light rail applications around the world.

Being extremely light weight (approximately 55 lbs per double seat) yet at the same time robust and durable due to its aluminum frame and stainless steel back, has made the Simos one of the most reliable and versatile modular solutions on the market. The seats are being manufactured at Kiel’s North American headquarters in Elkhart, Indiana, and incorporate environmentally friendly design and manufacturing practices. In partnership with Bombardier Transportation, Kiel has already delivered Simos seating solutions for light rail projects like City Runner Innsbruck/Austria as well as Docklands and ELL NLL in London/UK. Bombardier will also be integrating the popular Kiel seats in major projects with BART San Francisco, Metrolinx, plus the new bi-level GO Transit.

“With Simos, Kiel is delivering a top-performance seating solution that has been used throughout the world,” said Thomas Schwank, General Manager of Kiel North America. “Our modular seats combine a maximum of flexibility and comfort with an exemplary sustainable design that commuters will enjoy for many, many years to come and save the Toronto Transit Commission significant maintenance and fuel costs. We look forward to continuing the wonderful partnership and close collaboration with both Bombardier Transportation and Toronto Transit Commission.”