Subway Cars Get a Little Polish: Recyclable Eco-Carriages

Cities all around the globe are trying to get citizens to take public transportation more often than driving individual cars. Mass transit helps cut down on pollution and usually ends up being cheaper for the individual. But that’s not to say that buses, trains and other public transport systems are perfect. They have a lot of room to become more environmentally friendly themselves.

BMW and Siemens have designed a line of new eco-friendlier subway cars for the Polish capital of Warsaw that will be introduced in 2012. The cars, dubbed the Inspiro line, are lightweight to cut down on fuel consumption and the mechanical cabinets have been removed from the interior, giving passengers more room.

The car interiors are illuminated with soothing lighting and feature extra-wide entrances for better traffic flow; both of these features should help to make the riding experience calmer for everyone. And when the cars reach the end of their lives, they can go on to other lives since they are 97.5 percent recyclable.

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See more in Mass Transit or under Transportation. December, 2010.