SPRINGFIELD — A state court judge in Boston has denied rival railway car maker Hyundai Rotem Co.'s request to block CNR Changchun Railway Vehicles' development of a subway car factory on Page Boulevard in Springfield.

Hyundai, a South Korean company, sued Changchun, the state of Massachusetts and the MBTA in January saying the Chinese company got the contract to build Red and Orange line cars for the MBTA for political, not technical reasons. Hyundai had asked for a preliminary injunction blocking work on the contract, and on the factory in Springfield, while its lawsuit progressed.

Superior Court Judge Mitchell H. Kaplan said no to the request on Wednesday. The lawsuit itself goes on, but work continues.

In a written statement, MBTA spokesman Joe Pesaturo said:

"The MBTA is pleased that the court affirmed the judgments of the MBTA and found absolutely no merit to Hyundai's arguments. The MBTA looks forward to advancing the process of procuring these critically important subway cars."

CNR Changchun Railway Vehicles Co. has plans to build a $65 million, 220,000-square-foot railroad car factory at the former Westinghouse site on Page Boulevard. When operating, the car factory will have at least 150 employees.

CNR already owns the property and is in the design phase now. CNR Changchun officials met last week with prospective local suppliers, and a Changchun executive spoke at the annual meeting of the Economic Development Council of Western Massachusetts. Engineering faculty from Western New England University will travel to China later this month in hopes of partnering with Changchun.

Massachusetts officials went without federal funding on the project so they could require that assembly work take place somewhere in the commonwealth. That prospect set off a competition with cities wooing players in the transit car industry and manufacturers in turn courting cities. Besides Springfield, Pittsfield, Lee and Dalton in Berkshire County were all possible homes for the project.

Hyundai Rotem also planned to manufacture the cars in Springfield. Hyundai had planned to build a $30 million assembly plant that would hire 150 to 200 workers in a former warehouse at 180 Progress Ave.

But when CNR won the bid, Hyundai cried foul, saying the politics of building a larger factory in Springfield than it had planned to build trumped its superior bid. Hyundai has experience in North America that CNR Changchun lacks, Hyundai said.

But the judge pointed out in his ruling that not all that experience is good. The T has had trouble with rolling stock Hyundai built for it at Hyundai's Philadelphia plant.

Hyundai said the outcome of the bid process was preordained when then-Gov. Deval Patrick and his transportation secretary, Rich Davey, met with CNR Changchun officials during a trade mission to Hong Kong in 2013.

The judge said he saw no evidence of a preordained outcome. The judge pointed to an email exchange where Davey describes the bid-opening and that CNR Changchun was the low bidder. Davey reminds Patrick of the meeting in Hong Kong and tells Patrick that CNR Changchun was in the process of buying the Springfield site.

"Really good news. But would they do Pittsfield?" Patrick is quoted as replying.

CNR Changchun/ Hyundai Rotem decision