The contract also includes 24 years’ maintenance. The base contract is worth €197m, and includes an option for 10 additional vehicles and eight more years’ maintenance.
The new vehicles are wider than DVB’s current fleet resulting in a 10% increase in capacity, and offer more comfort with 2+2 seating and large windows. To enable the trains to operate on existing infrastructure, only the portion of the car body above platform level has been widened.
The car bodies will be manufactured at Bombardier’s car body centre in Görlitz, Saxony, while final assembly and commissioning will be carried out at the facility in Bautzen. The fleet will be delivered by the end of October 2023.
“I am pleased that DVB is counting on the employees’ competence, know-how and the quality of Bombardier's products here in Saxony and that these modern LRVs are being built at the Saxon sites,” says Saxony minister of economic affairs, Mr Martin Dulig. “The future of both factories and Bombardier’s long-term commitment are very close to my heart.”
“We urgently need the new light rail vehicles, which provide greater capacity, in order to offer sufficient space for the rapidly growing number of passengers,” says Mr Andreas Hemmersbach, DVB board member for finance and technology. “In a multi-stage selection process, criteria such as technology, price, service and design were evaluated on a points-based system. Of all the manufacturers, Bombardier offered us the best overall package.”
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